Interview with an Authoress
by Shadow's Mirror
Summary: Strange things are happening in the Shadow Realm. Against a background of weird weather, stirring magic and growing chaos, the Dark Magician's interviews with the Authoress aren't always in front of the camera. complete
1. The First Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story works best if you picture it as being a show that you're watching on the TV. Apart from that, it's exactly what the title says it is ^_^

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Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 1: The First Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

**_Show aired April 11, 2004_**

The Dark Magician sits in a comfortably squishy armchair in a library, surrounded by bookshelves filled with books and with a fireplace (complete with a standard cheerfully crackling fire in the grate and a soft furry rug in front of it) off to one side. He looks up and smiles at the audience. 

"Welcome to 'Interview with an Authoress'. I am the Dark Magician and I will be your host this evening." 

"What if it's morning where they are?" The voice comes from the sidelines. The Dark Magician sighs as Dark Witch pokes her head into the camera's shot. 

"How did you get in here?" 

"I flew. I do have wings, in case you hadn't noticed. You left your window wide open. I took it as an 'open' invitation." Dark Witch grins at her pun as the Dark Magician sighs again. 

"Security!" Two burly Rock Ogre Grotto #1s come into view and 'escort' Dark Witch away. The Dark Magician turns back to his audience and smiles wryly. "My apologies for that interruption. Shall we continue? As I was saying, I shall be your host as you journey into the mind and soul of the Authoress known as Shadow's Mirror. She joins us now." 

The camera pans back to reveal a second squishy chair with a young woman sitting in it. She is dressed in a black cloak that completely covers her from her neck to her feet. Her hood is up, however some strands of brown hair have worked their way to freedom from within the hood. Her serious brown eyes regard the audience steadily for a moment before she smiles and nods. 

"Hey everyone. I'd just like to state here and now that this is not an author's note. It is a story. A very weird story, true, but it's still a story." She winks as the Dark Magician begins the interview.

"Shadow's Mirror, if I may start off by asking you… isn't the correct term 'Author' rather than 'Authoress'?" The Dark Magician steeples his fingers and leans back in his chair.

"I'm glad you asked me that. Technically, yes, 'Author' is now considered to be the politically correct term, however since I am female, I feel that I should be allowed to call myself 'Authoress' if I prefer to do so. Which I do. I grew up using the term and I'm more comfortable with it."

"I see. Speaking of names and terms, is there a particular reason for your name, 'Shadow's Mirror'?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "Yes! Actually there is! Unfortunately it's something that I can't reveal at this point. All I can say is that it will become clear by the end of my fic, 'Tournament of Shadows'."

The Dark Magician blinks and leans forward. "Your name has some connection with one of your stories? Then you must have been planning that story from the beginning."

"That's right. Tournament has been floating around in my mind for quite some time now."

"Yet, I believe I am correct in saying that it was not your first work of fanfiction, or that it is your main work at this time, yes? I am of course referring only to your work within Yu-Gi-Oh! fandom since we all know that is the only fandom with any meaning at all whatsoever."

An irritated voice comes from the sidelines. "Hey!" The next moment the security ogres 'escort' a boy with long white hair and dog ears off the set. Shadow's Mirror ignores the interruption.

"Yes, that's true. My first Yu-Gi-Oh! fanfic was actually one called 'The Caretaker' and at the moment, my main ongoing story is 'Another Source of Magic'. But the original characters in Tournament have been around since I started watching the anime, as has the story itself. It's just that I didn't feel up to tackling the writing of it until I felt comfortable with writing within this particular universe. I want to do a good job on it and I feel that you can't do a good job on something unless you actually have at least some idea of what you're doing."

"Very good point. So what are your plans regarding Tournament? Will it become your main work?"

"I doubt it. Especially not according to the reviews I've received so far. It's not catching much attention. Of everything that I'm writing at the moment, it is the one that I'm most concerned about. I really don't want to stuff it up. But Source will always hold a special place in my heart. It's the first fic I've written that has received so much attention and so many wonderful reviews. Not to mention that the storyline is my favourite of everything I've come up with… Well…"

"You seem to have second thoughts about that comment. There's another story you prefer?"

"I do have one planned that's going to be very interesting. The potential is there, but whether or not I can do a good job of it remains to be seen."

"It sounds intriguing. What's it called?" 

"Its working title is 'The Egyptian Artifact'. It focuses on Bakura and I can't really say anything more without giving too much away."

"I see. If I can redirect for a moment, earlier you mentioned a story that I haven't heard of. 'The Caretaker'. Tell us a bit about it. Where can we read it?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs again. "At the moment, it's not online. It was the first Yu-Gi-Oh! fic I wrote and I'm afraid that it's terribly inaccurate according to the anime and manga. When I wrote it, I had a fairly good idea of the characters, but there were a couple of key details that I got some bad information on."

"For example?" 

Another laugh. "Yugi's mother! I read on a website that in one episode she gets worried about Yugi because he's mumbling in his sleep about darkness and games and someone named Yami Yugi. So, I included her in the story. It wasn't until several months later that I found out that she isn't mentioned at all in the anime. At least, she hasn't been mentioned so far and I'm currently watching the Battle City episodes." Grinning, Shadow's Mirror turns to the camera. 

"Here's a little tip for anyone who writes fanfiction. If you want to write an 'alternate universe' fic, then pretty much anything goes, but if you're like me and you prefer to work within what already exists, make sure you use a reputable episode guide for episodes that you haven't personally seen! Small inconsistencies you can sometimes get away with, but things like suddenly appearing mothers… Oh boy!" She laughs again as the Dark Magician chuckles.

"So we'll never get to read that story?"

"I'm considering reworking that one, and a couple of others that I have. If I do it, then you probably will get to read it at some point. Of course, whether or not it's worth reading… As always, I'll leave that up to the reviewers to decide!" 

"Fair enough. That was one mistake, have you made any others in your stories?" 

Shadow's Mirror laughs for quite a while before answering. "Constantly! You can't write anything without making mistakes. It's all part of the process! The most embarrassing one I've made was when I wrote 'Bast' instead of 'Bastet' for the Egyptian Cat Goddess… I had to change a rhyme in a spell and everything for that one… I'm glad it was pointed out to me though. If I'd found out about it at a later point, it would have been even more embarrassing! I love it when people point out my mistakes. It gives me a chance to fix them before too many people see it and think that I'm stupid or careless. I can be both, but not where my stories are concerned." She suddenly becomes serious. 

"As far as I'm concerned, if something's worth writing, then it's worth doing a good job on it. I can't judge the degree of skill that I have in the actual writing, but I consider it a matter of honour to make sure that all of my stories are as accurate and in-character as I can make them."

The Dark Magician starts to cough and Shadow's Mirror sighs. "I really do write the characters as I see them." She shrugs. "Every writer has a certain style of writing characters, a 'signature'. Mine makes some characters seem slightly… fluffier… than others."

"Slightly!?" The voice comes from off-camera a moment before Bakura storms onto the set, very irritated. "You're writing yaoi! That's more than 'slightly fluffier'! I should know since I seem to be your main target! What is the deal with me and Ryou anyway? I'm a 5,000 year old spirit and he's my mortal light. How in the world could we ever do anything interesting?" 

The Dark Magician frowns. "Well, there goes our G rating… Security!" Bakura's eyes gleam as he holds up his Ring with a smirk. Shadow's Mirror suddenly holds up her hand. Her eyes are twinkling mischievously. 

"No, it's okay, I want to answer this one." The security ogres, very relieved, turn around and head off-camera again. Shadow's Mirror fixes her gaze on Bakura, who suddenly looks rather nervous.

"That's what Physical Form spells are for." Shadow's Mirror winks at Bakura, who goes red. 

"Also, I do not write yaoi." As Bakura snickers and shakes his head, muttering something that sounds remarkably like 'you poor deluded fool', Shadow's Mirror sighs and elaborates. 

"It depends on your definition of the term. To me, yaoi implies something more… visual than what I write. I will hint and imply, I might even go so far as a kiss or a hug, and glomping is definitely in there, but nothing I write is explicit. I focus on the emotional side of things rather than the physical. That goes for everything I write, not just the fluffy stuff. Since most of those who read these stories are fanfic writers themselves, I know that their imaginations are easily up to the task of filling in the blanks. They probably do a better job of it than I ever could, for that matter." Shadow's Mirror grins and winks at the camera. 

Bakura doesn't look happy. "So Ryou and I will never…" He turns red as the Dark Magician and Shadow's Mirror both start laughing. "Oh Ra… I said that out loud…" 

Shadow's Mirror manages to control her laughter. "Sorry Bakura, but no, I'm afraid you and Ryou are doomed to be nothing more than fluffy." She pauses for a moment, reconsidering. "Change that to 'highly fluffy'." Seeing Bakura's depressed look she sighs. "All right. Highly fluffy with plenty of implication and innuendo, but that's as high as I'm willing to go! Deal?" 

Bakura thinks for a moment. "Does that include kisses? And the words! I want him to say the words!" He glares at Shadow's Mirror as she sighs and nods. "In that infernal series where you keep torturing me." Shadow's Mirror blinks and looks confused for a moment. 

"Oh! You mean Source! Honestly Bakura, don't you think 'torture' is a bit strong?" Bakura raises an eyebrow and Shadow's Mirror looks thoughtful. "Hmm… then again… No that probably is a pretty fair assessment, come to think of it. Okay, a kiss and the words in the next chapter. Deal?" 

Bakura's eyes gleam. "Deal!" He suddenly frowns. "Wait a minute… the next chapter? But… I'm still a chibi! Curse it to the Shadows, woman! That's not what I meant and you know it!"

Shadow's Mirror does a credible imitation of one of Bakura's smirks. "Yes. I do. I also know what's going to happen to you and Ryou in the rest of the story. Trust me, Bakura, if you knew what I know, you'd start doing some serious grovelling around about now instead of making demands. You really don't want me to be in a bad mood when I write the remaining chapters."

The Dark Magician sits up, his interest in the conversation renewed. "'Remaining chapters'? Does that mean you're close to finishing that series?" Bakura also looks interested in the answer.

"Darn, that was one spoiler that I didn't mean to give out…" Shadow's Mirror sighs and nods. "Yes, by my reckoning, and keep in mind that I'm not exactly known for keeping to this sort of thing, the next story arc in Source should be the last one. I think there's about six chapters left to go."

"Thank Ra!" Bakura speaks the words with great feeling.

The Dark Magician frowns at him. "So in that case, perhaps you should return to the story… Here, allow me to help you!" He mutters a spell and Bakura suddenly vanishes in a puff of smoke. The Dark Magician, Shadow's Mirror and the camera crew immediately begin coughing as the smoke fills the room. 

"Dark Magician! You really need to find a better spell… or at least a way to make the smoke smell less like old socks sprinkled with mouldy cheese!" Shadow's Mirror protests. 

"My apologies…" The Dark Magician pauses to cough and Dark Witch's voice suddenly speaks up.

"What would you do without me?" With a beating of wings the smoke is pushed out of the window so everyone can breathe again. Dark Witch smirks at the Dark Magician, who blinks back at her. 

"I thought security…"

"Those weaklings? They each have only 700 attack points. I have 1800. No contest." Dark Witch smiles smugly as the ogres can be heard sniffling sadly off-camera. The Dark Magician sighs.

"To return to the interview…" He ignores Dark Witch who winks at the audience before perching on the arm of the Dark Magician's chair. "Shadow's Mirror, where do you get your ideas from?"

Shadow's Mirror settles herself more comfortably in her chair. "Oh that's a tough one to answer. Most of the time it's entirely subconscious. I'll get a flash, like a movie running through my mind. Sometimes it's just a single image, sometimes it's a few minutes' long. Every now and then I'll find myself with a few lines of dialogue or written text stuck in my head instead, although the first idea is usually visual for me. I've also been known to sit down and start working on one story, only to find myself writing something else completely. Sometimes it's because I've gone off in an unexpected direction, but not always. Every now and then I'll get a completely unrelated idea while I'm working on a story and I'll have to open a new file and jot it down before I lose it." 

Shadow's Mirror suddenly laughs. "Then of course there's the stories that happen because of my rather rambling way of writing. I like to describe things like scenes and character movements, so my stories can often end up being longer than I start off thinking they'll be. I remember one time I sat down to write a short one-shot about socks, a Physical Form spell and Bakura being chased by fangirls. It ended up being chapter one of Source!"

The Dark Magician blinks. "That's how 'Another Source of Magic' began? As a one-shot?" 

Shadow's Mirror grins. "I'm afraid so. That whole series came about because of my rambling, and it didn't just end with how it started either! Once I realised it was a series, I planned it out. It was supposed to be five chapters long, but by the time I reached chapter eight I was having so much fun that I decided to just let it go wherever it wanted to go. It's currently twenty-six chapters long."

"That brings me to my next question. Do you plan any of your stories, and if so, how much is planned and how much is spontaneous?"

"Well… it depends on the story. In most cases, I know what's going to happen in the story overall, so I just sit down and write it as it comes to me. In other cases, I need specific things to happen in a certain order, so I'll plan those stories out more carefully. If there's a duel involved, then I'll usually spend a few hours sorting out the details of that before I start writing it. The same for any chapters that I need to do research for."

"So you do research?"

"After the incident with Bast/Bastet, most definitely!" Shadow's Mirror laughs. "For example, I've recently finished researching female names used in Ancient Egypt."

The Dark Magician smiles. "Ah yes, that would be for your 'Hearts, Souls and Shadows' story." 

Dark Witch grins. "Hey! I'm in that one!" 

The Dark Magician frowns at her. "Not as much as I am." 

"Technically, you're only in it right at the end." Dark Witch pokes her tongue out at the Dark Magician. 

"Hey! Stop giving away so many spoilers! That's my job!" Shadow's Mirror laughingly protests. "Yes, the names were for Hearts. The magician's three daughters now have names, in case I ever need to use them. The sons have always had names, I just haven't mentioned them yet."

"Is there a reason for that?" 

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Yes. A little thing called a plot twist." The Dark Magician smiles.

"Speaking of that fanfic… are you pleased with how it's turning out?"

"Yes and no. I'm a little disappointed that it hasn't received more reviews, because it's one of the best things I've ever written. On the other hand though, it's also one of the most boring, so I can understand why people haven't really gotten into it yet. The good news is, I've covered most of the boring bits already. The pace should pick up after the next chapter. After, not in. I still have a bit more history to cover." Shadow's Mirror pulls a face.

"So, is that why it's taking so long to write? Because you are finding it boring?"

"Oh no! Not at all! I actually only started actively writing it on April 6 and it's going very nicely."

"So you've been focusing on other stories instead?" 

"Not exactly… It was really rather unfortunate, but I somehow managed to get up to 'simmering' chapters in all of my ongoing series at the same time."

"Simmering?"

"When I get an idea for a story, usually I'll get a series of ideas but the way that they connect will take a bit of time for me to sort out. When that happens, all I can do is put the ideas to the back of my mind and work on something else while they 'simmer'. When they're ready, I can usually write them in a couple of hours. Some stories I can actually start and they simmer as I go, but others take a while. Chapter 27 of Source is proving particularly stubborn at the moment. I know what happens at the start and end, but the middle is still simmering. Usually I'll have at least one story active at a time, but at the moment they're all on simmer."

"Except for 'Conversations', your newest fanfic."

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "Conversations was actually started because all of my other stories were in simmer mode. I was bored and I got the idea for a quick one-shot. I wanted to test myself with a new style. It got good reviews so I tried a second. Then I wrote a third, but changed the plot twist slightly so it wasn't as predictable. Then I planned the rest of the series and started writing them."

"So you've planned it?" 

"In a way. I have a list of the chapters and who's in them, as well as a few words to say what happens. They're unusual ones. I don't normally write the way I'm writing these."

"Oh? How so?"

"I normally write the story as it comes, each word in order. But in these I'm writing the dialogue first and then fitting the rest of the story around it. I'm keeping each chapter as short and simple as I can. It's quite a challenge considering how I normally ramble." 

"I see. So can you give us a sneak preview of anything from this series?" 

"Hmm… well, I can say that there are going to be twenty chapters, I think. I have the first twelve written, and the nineteenth will star Yugi and Téa. The description I have for that one is 'How to say those three little words'." Shadow's Mirror's eyes gleam as she grins mischievously.

The Dark Magician's eyes widen in shock. "You're not going to…?"

Shadow's Mirror's grin widens. "You'll just have to read it to find out what happens!" 

Dark Witch laughs and the Dark Magician frowns at her before returning his attention to Shadow's Mirror. "You mentioned earlier that you research and plan your duels. What kind of planning do you do for them? Are you actually a duelist yourself?" 

Shadow's Mirror smiles mysteriously. "In a manner of speaking, yes and no. I have my own deck and I have far more cards than I should, but I don't actually use them except when planning out my story duels. Most of the cards I write into my stories are ones that I either have in my own deck, or that I've used at some point while playing the video games, so the duels are accurate."

"You don't write duels into your fanfics very often though. Why is that?"

"Because they take a long time to write in order to do a good job on them, and they're not the main focus of most of my stories. There are exceptions though. There will be a major duel in Hearts and 'Tournament of Shadows' is going to have a few, I think." 

"Ah yes, it's a promising story, although it seems to be going very slowly. Also, five original characters…" Dark Magician raises an eyebrow. 

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "I know! It's ridiculous! But I need them all in there. I only use original characters when I have a reason for doing so. As for the pace, yes, I can't write it very fast because I need to get a bit further in one of my other stories before I get too far into Tournament. Otherwise I'll give away a major plot twist. I really should have waited to start Tournament… I think I'll write one more chapter and after that I'll put it on hold for a while." 

"You mentioned using original characters… You also use them extensively in 'Hearts, Souls and Shadows'. Can you tell us a little about that?" 

"There's not much I can say without giving the whole plot away, but basically Hearts begins about twenty-five years before the Pharaoh seals the Shadow Realm. So obviously the main focus of the story isn't the characters, but what's happening in the story as a whole. The characters are there because they each have a part to play in the events that are happening, but only two of them are important as characters. It's a background story, but it's also setting up for things that happen in Source, Tournament, 'Library of Shadows' and another story that's currently in the planning stages."

"So it is a major story then?"

"Oh definitely! It's my most ambitious project so far. Even larger than Source."

"But no Yu-Gi-Oh! characters will appear in it?"

"I didn't say that. The Shadow Monsters exist in that time and although the story starts before the Realm is sealed, it doesn't end until much later, so Yami and Bakura will probably appear in it."

"Welcome news I'm sure for all of the Yami and Bakura fans reading your stories. Speaking of the readers, I'm sure that most of them will have noticed some fairly unusual spelling all through your stories. Words such as 'honour' instead of 'honor' and 'realise' instead of 'realize'. I believe you wanted to explain that?"

"Oh yes! For anyone who hasn't already worked it out, I'm Australian. We spell some words differently over here than in America. I spellcheck all my stories and I also proofread them, so by the time the stories get online they're usually error-free. Spelling errors anyway." She grins.

"Well that certainly explains a lot. Now then, one final question if I may… who is your favourite Shadow Monster to write about?" Dark Magician smiles calmly as Dark Witch gasps. He winces as she whacks him over the head with her spear.

"Hey! No fair! What a position to put her in! Having to say it's me right to your face…" She smirks.

"Actually… it's a tie." Shadow's Mirror grins as both Duel Monsters blink at her. "Between Fire Sorcerer, and…" both Monsters look hopeful "the Spirit of the Books."

"What!? But he hasn't even appeared in any of your stories! How can you choose him over me?" Dark Witch looks crushed. The Dark Magician isn't far behind her. 

"He's going to be in one soon, so he counts. Besides, he's saved me more than once in my duels." Shadow's Mirror smiles at them both. "I don't know why you're both so upset, surely you know by now that I consider you both to be characters rather than mere Monsters…"

Dark Witch and the Dark Magician blink and then they both smile. Faint hints of colour appear on their cheeks.

"And on that note, we'll end today's episode of 'Interview with an Authoress'. We hope you have enjoyed the show! If you have the time and inclination, please leave a review to let Shadow's Mirror know what you thought about it," Dark Witch pipes up cheerfully, causing the Dark Magician to frown at her. 

"I believe that was my line…" He sighs and turns to his guest. "Shadow's Mirror, thank you for your time…" The Dark Magician smiles at her. Shadow's Mirror grins back.

"My pleasure! Thank you for allowing me to write you into this situation." 

"Would you care to give a closing statement to our audience?" 

Shadow's Mirror nods eagerly and turns to the camera. "I would like to say a very big thank you to everyone who has read my stories, especially to those wonderful readers who also take the time to review them and let me know what they thought. I love getting reviews, they make my day but they also give me the inspiration and reason to keep on writing. Thank you."

As the show's closing credits roll, Dark Magician looks off to the sidelines. "Right… now that's over… would somebody please do something about this Witch? I just know that she's going to try to steal my hat or set it on fire again…"

Dark Witch grins at him. "Has anyone ever told you that you're paranoid?" she asks cheerfully. "I have no intention of doing anything to your hat," she adds, while signalling to someone just out of sight. 

Fire Sorcerer peeks into view, waves his hand and sets fire to the Dark Magician's hat. 

Shadow's Mirror bursts into laughter. The Dark Magician sighs. "I knew it…" 

Cut! Okay, that's a wrap! ^_^


	2. The Second Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The link mentioned later in this chapter was added to my bio page a few minutes before this chapter was uploaded. So if it's not there when you look, please wait a couple of hours and try again. Updates to bio pages take a while to show up sometimes.

.

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Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 2: The Second Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

.

**_Show aired May30, 2004_**

The scene opens with a wide-angle view of a comfortable library, with floor to ceiling shelves filled with books and more piles of books covering every available surface except for a few well-placed paths across the floor, the top of the desk and the chairs. The camera zooms in on the squishy armchair placed before the cheerfully crackling fire and then zooms in further to detail the long stick, complete with toasting marshmallow, currently being waved in the flames. There's a gasp and the stick is suddenly withdrawn. The camera pans back up to the occupant of the chair.

Dark Witch smiles and tries to look innocent as she discreetly licks marshmallow off her lips. "Hello there and welcome to another Interview with the Authoress, Shadow's Mirror."

"Oh, now this is really going too far!" Dark Witch's smile widens into a smirk as the Dark Magician comes into view. Hands on his hips, the tall mage gives the unperturbed witch his crossest look. "My dear Dark Witch, I believe you're in my chair!" Dark Witch smiles up at him.

"And a very comfortable chair it is, too. Um… do you mind? I'm trying to do an interview here." She makes a shooing motion with her hand. The Dark Magician blinks and looks embarrassed.

"Oh, sorry about that. I'll just… Wait a minute… Dark Witch!" He glares at her as she starts laughing. "Honestly! Well if it's a duel you want, then I'm only too happy to oblige! I would just like to remind you that I have 2500 attack points. How about you?" Dark Witch immediately stops laughing.

"That's right… rub it in…" Grumbling and shooting irritated glances at the smug 700-points-more-powerful-than-her mage, the female Shadow Monster hauls herself out of the cosy chair. "Just you wait. The first chance I get, I'm teaming up with a Blue Eyes White Dragon."

The Dark Magician gives a satisfied sigh as he settles down into his chair. "I seem to recall your trying that a time or a hundred before."

"Yes… well this time I'll do more than scorch your kitchen!" Giving him another glare, Dark Witch perches herself on the arm of his chair and crosses her arms. As the Dark Magician blinks at her, she shrugs. "What? Do I have to have a reason for being here? Oh fine. I like this show. You're not much of an interviewer but at least Shadow's Mirror is usually entertaining."

"Gee. Thanks. Why do I suddenly feel like I should start swinging on a trapeze while juggling half a dozen ducks and a bottle of chocolate sauce?" At the sound of the wry voice, the camera pans back to reveal the black-hooded figure of the Authoress, Shadow's Mirror, sitting in another plush armchair on the other side of the fireplace.

The Dark Magician looks thoughtful. "I wouldn't recommend it. You know what Bakura's like with ducks and I'm afraid we are currently all out of chocolate sauce."

Dark Witch nods. "Malik and Marik came for a visit yesterday."

"Also," the Dark Magician ignores the interruption and continues, "our trapeze isn't the most reliable at the moment. It keeps getting blown away because of all these magical storms we've been having lately." He gestures out the window to the weather outside, which seems to be an odd mix of torrential rain, gale-force winds and purple snow.

"What is with this crazy weather, anyway?" Dark Witch looks expectantly at Shadow's Mirror.

"It isn't just the weather. All of the Shadow Magic is unsettled and quite a few of the Shadow Monsters are being affected by it also," the Dark Magician reminds Dark Witch before sighing heavily. "At first it was just the weaker creatures, but it's starting to affect some of the stronger ones now. Although, I don't believe you've really mentioned any of this in your stories yet, have you?" He directs the question to Shadow's Mirror.

Under the watchful gazes of both Shadow Monsters, Shadow's Mirror shifts uncomfortably in her chair. "Uh… yes and no. I made a brief mention of something odd going on, during the Christmas chapters of 'Source'. There was supposed to be a discussion of it in those chapters too, in the section where everyone was at Yugi's, but I ended up cutting it out because it was rambling too much."

Dark Witch blinks. "You mean you actually curbed your rambling? I don't believe it…"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "I know. Just goes to show you how bad that part of the story was! Seriously, I will be detailing the situation in the Shadow Realm in more detail during 'Library' and 'Source'. Probably in 'Shadows' too, although I haven't planned that far yet. Basically, it starts during 'Source' and gets progressively worse until the end of 'Shadows'. By then it should have been explained in full."

"Just so our audience knows," Dark Magician smiles slightly as the camera zooms in for a close-up of him. "You are referring to your stories by the nicknames that you have for them, correct?"

He frowns as he realises that the camera has slowly moved to one side and is now focused on Dark Witch's legs and skirt. The skirt that her position on the arm of the chair has caused to shift until the hemline is barely decent. The Dark Magician frowns at the camera. "Ahem! Do you mind! We're trying to keep this show more or less PG! Who's on that camera anyway?"

"That would be D. Human." Dark Witch smirks as the Dark Magician sighs.

"Well, that certainly explains it. He's had a fascination with your legs for the past 5,000 years. Why should today be any different?"

Shadow's Mirror somehow manages to keep from laughing long enough to answer the Dark Magician's original question about the story references. "Yes, because of the length of some of my story titles, I tend to refer to them by one key word used in the title."

The Dark Magician nods. "Could you just run through them all for us, to avoid any confusion later?" Shadow's Mirror grins.

"Sure! 'Source' is 'Another Source of Magic', 'Library' is 'The Shadow Library', 'Shadows' is 'The Shadow Tournament' and shouldn't be confused with 'Hearts', which refers to 'Hearts, Souls and Shadows'. 'Conversations' is 'Conversations', obviously, and that just leaves 'Interview', which I'm sure everyone will realise is what they're looking at right now. They're all of my current ongoing Yu-Gi-Oh! fics, any others that I mention I'll call by their full titles."

"I see. Thank you. So you currently have six ongoing stories?" the Dark Magician winces as Dark Witch prods him in the shoulder.

"She just said that, idiot."

Shadow's Mirror grins and shakes her head. "Actually, I said 'ongoing **Yu-Gi-Oh!** fics'. I also have three others that are currently being written. Two for Inu-Yasha, both of which are up to their last chapters, and one for Angel. Which is as much of a surprise to me as it will be to anyone who knows me. I don't write Angel. Me, write in a non-anime fandom? It's unheard of! And yet… it's happened."

"So, does this mean that you're branching out into another fandom, or is it just a one-off?" Both Shadow Monsters eye Shadow's Mirror warily as they await her response. For once, the Authoress is silent for some time as she gives the question serious consideration.

"At this point, it's a one-off. I had a half-hour free a few days ago and an idea just came to me so I wrote the first chapter. It's not going to be a major story. It's certainly not going to be in the same league as 'Source'. It's just something that I felt compelled to write after reading a review of the show's last episode. I won't get to see the actual episode until July, but considering that just the review made me cry by the halfway point, it's already made a definite impression on me."

The Dark Magician nods. The mood in the room has become surprisingly serious but for once he makes no attempt to lighten it. "You said you had two other fics that were up to their last chapters. Did you want to say anything about them?"

Shadow's Mirror blushes. "I'm rather embarrassed about them, actually. I haven't updated either of them for quite some time. I always find the last chapter of a story to be the hardest to write. It's certainly the most emotional, for me. The more effort I put into a story, the harder it is to finish it and these two stories are both very dear to my heart. It's difficult to write them, especially when it's to end them. I'm sorry for the delay, but writing isn't something that I can force myself to do. If a story is still simmering in my mind, then no amount of trying will get that story onto a page. Once it stops simmering, then it's ready to go and all I have to do is start typing and it sort of flows out of me and onto the computer screen. That's the only way I've ever been able to explain it."

"You can only write if you feel like writing." Dark Witch nods wisely as Shadow's Mirror grins at her.

"Yes, that's a part of it, too. There are times when I simply don't feel like it. Usually, that means that something else that's been simmering in my mind is ready to go. Most things take longer to simmer than stories though, so I spend most of my free time writing rather than doing other stuff."

The Dark Magician blinks. "You mean you do other things besides write?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "Well I do have a life, you know!"

"You do? Since when?" Shadow's Mirror, Dark Witch and the Dark Magician all blink at Bakura as he saunters into view. He smirks at Shadow's Mirror. "You're not allowed to have a life. You have a job to do. You need to spend as much time writing about me… I mean us… as possible!"

Shadow's Mirror sighs and shakes her head, but her eyes are twinkling with amusement as she replies. "Not everything is about you, Bakura. Although you have definitely been on my mind for the past few weeks! Almost everything I've done has been related to you in some way or another!"

The Dark Magician leans forward in sudden interest, but Dark Witch's attention is on Bakura, who has suddenly gone surprisingly pale. "Oh really? Have you been writing about Bakura? Anything you can tell us about?" The Dark Magician eyes Shadow's Mirror with eager anticipation.

"Oh Ra… No… You wouldn't dare tell them about…" Bakura winces as he catches sight of the gleam in Shadow's Mirror's eyes. "Oh who in the Shadows am I kidding? Of course you'd dare… But that doesn't mean that I have to be here to hear it!" He hurries for the door and is gone before anyone can do more than blink.

"Well… that's one way to get rid of him. I really must remember that, for future reference," the Dark Magician mutters as he gazes thoughtfully at the doorway. He turns to Shadow's Mirror and raises an eyebrow. "Does this have anything to do with why you haven't updated any of your stories for over three weeks?"

Shadow's Mirror smirks. "You could say that. Three weeks ago, I had to go offline while my computer was being repaired. By the time I got it back again, a week had passed and I was climbing the walls from going without email for so long. But during that week, I'd had time to catch up on a few things that I'd been meaning to do, including a few sketches."

Dark Witch blinks. "Sketches? Since when have you sketched?"

"Since I was four. I was a real sketch-demon back in my childhood. I've calmed down some since then. For the past twelve years, I've averaged about one halfway decent sketch every three years. But while my computer was away, that changed a little."

Dark Witch and the Dark Magician trade a wary look before Dark Witch tentatively asks the question that's on both their minds. "Define 'a little'."

"Five in a week." Shadow's Mirror grins as both Shadow Monsters blink at her in shock. "Yes, it surprised me too. Of course, once I had the sketches done and my computer back, I had to turn the sketches into proper pictures. Since I'm not much of an artist, that took a lot of time. Being both fussy and not good at art is a recipe for frustration. I like to think that I get there in the end though."

"So…" The Dark Magician shakes his head as he tries to overcome his continued shock at the number of sketches. "Since you said that Bakura was on your mind the entire time, I assume that these are all sketches of… him?" His attempt at not looking disappointed is a complete failure.

"Not all of them and not entirely." The Dark Magician looks hopeful. "I have two of Bakura-chibi and two of Bakura-kitty. The kitty ones are just of him, as is one of the chibi ones, but the other chibi pic is of Ryou holding Bakura-chibi as he sleeps. You can just make out Bakura-chibi's Dark Witch plushie."

The Dark Magician sighs. "Of course you can…"

Shadow's Mirror ignores the muttering mage and continues. "The last pic is an illustration for a co-story that I'm currently working on with my friend NightDragon. The story's not finished, but I get into an artistic mood so rarely that I thought I'd better do the pic while I could."

Since the Dark Magician is still muttering to himself about plushies (something about why it couldn't have been a Dark Magician plushie) Dark Witch takes up the questioning. "So, are these pics online somewhere for the audience to go look at them if they wish to?"

"Yes, they are! Eventually, they'll be on my own website, but it's currently in desperate need of updating so for the time being they're only on my Deviant Art site. The link is at the bottom of my bio page." Shadow's Mirror is bouncing happily in her chair as she speaks.

"I see." The Dark Magician, apparently through with his little sulking session, returns his attention to the conversation. "So, if you've been doing art instead of writing, do you have any news about your current and upcoming stories, or is everything still as it was when last we spoke to you?"

Shadow's Mirror thinks for a moment, which gives her a chance to calm down enough to stop bouncing. "I haven't had much time to write, but I have made a bit of progress with some of them. The ones that were simmering have had plenty of time so they're mostly ready to go now. Which ones are you interested in knowing about?" She grins at the Dark Magician.

"'Source'!" Dark Witch immediately replies, earning a laugh from Shadow's Mirror.

"As of when this goes to air, Chapter 28 is done and I'm about to upload it."

"Wonderful! Anything you can tell us about it?" Dark Witch looks as innocent as she can. Shadow's Mirror laughs again and shakes her head.

"You know, that look really doesn't work for you. But I guess I can tell you a couple of things. Let me think… Okay… this next chapter contains one kiss, one spell-poem, quite a bit of magic, some tears and even more cuteness. Oh, and the plushie is in it too." Shadow's Mirror grins as Dark Witch beams.

"Oh good. I like that plushie!"

"You would." The Dark Magician ignores Dark Witch's glare and focused on Shadow's Mirror instead. "How about 'Conversations'?"

"I'm up to chapter 14 and I'm actually posting it at the same time as this interview goes to air. Chapter 15 may take me a little while though. I still have to work out what's happening in it."

The Dark Magician nods. "I see. What of 'Hearts'?"

Dark Witch smirks. "Trust you to ask about that one." The Dark Magician ignores her.

Shadow's Mirror grins. "I'm almost up to page four and I also have the last two paragraphs written."

"Excellent! Is 'Shadows' coming along also?"

"Not really. I have five original characters in it and I was having a bit of trouble with their descriptions, but I managed to do up a picture of all of them before I went offline so now it's just a matter of waiting until it stops simmering. I think the next chapter is going to include the start of the tournament, so there's a good chance that there'll be at least one duel in it."

The Dark Magician nods but it's Dark Witch who replies. "Just as long as we don't see Rex Raptor or Weevil Underwood in their boxers again!" She shudders at the memory as the Dark Magician winces.

"Not in the next chapter, no. But it probably will happen at some point. It's too funny to leave out." Shadow's Mirror smirks as the Shadow Monsters both go pale at the thought.

"'Funny' isn't the term I'd use for it…" Dark Witch pulls a face.

"So… what does that leave? 'Interview' is obviously being updated soon. What about 'Library'?" Dark Magician tries desperately to return the conversation to more pleasant topics.

Shadow's Mirror winces. Apparently this isn't what she considers to be a pleasant topic. "I'm having some trouble with it. Every time I put it on 'simmer', the flame goes out entirely and the whole thing ends up like cold porridge."

"Problems?" Dark Witch asks sympathetically. Shadow's Mirror sighs and nods.

"With the timing of it, yes. I'm starting to think that it's set after 'Source', but that doesn't give me much time to work within before 'Shadows', and there's supposed to be a sequel to it!" Shadow's Mirror sighs and then smiles. "On the bright side, I've finally worked out where it's going and what it's all about! Which is more than I had a week ago."

Dark Witch is wriggling on her armrest impatiently and the Dark Magician sighs. "If you have a question, why don't you just go ahead and ask it? Like you've been doing all through this interview…"

"She said the magic word! Sequel!" Dark Witch laughs at Shadow's Mirror's confusion. "You said 'Library' was going to have a sequel! Tell us more! You know you want to!" She grins and winks.

Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "Oh all right, I confess. Yes, 'Library' is going to have a sequel. It doesn't have a title yet, although I'm considering 'In Search of a Prophecy'. It's going to be a crossover. Between Yu-Gi-Oh! and…" Shadow's Mirror pauses to take a deep breath, "Harry Potter."

"What?!" Dark Witch and the Dark Magician both stare at Shadow's Mirror as though she has grown wings, although only Dark Witch speaks. The Dark Magician seems to have been struck speechless at the very thought of such a story. "You're joking! Please tell me that you're joking!"

Shadow's Mirror grins wryly. "It's not as bad as it sounds. Really. You know my writing style so it's obviously not going to be something out of character, or the realm of possibility for that matter."

Dark Witch eyes the girl warily. "This is another of your 'writing tests', isn't it? Something that you're doing just to see if you can do it and what the results are like?"

Shadow's Mirror looks thoughtful. "It's more a case of there being some things that a fanfiction writer simply has to try at least once. It's practically an unwritten rule of fanfiction writing that you have to write at least one unlikely crossover."

"And your Yu-Gi-Oh!/Pokémon/Inu-Yasha/Nights Into Dreams crossover fic doesn't count?" Dark Witch smirks as the Dark Magician and Shadow's Mirror both wince at the mention of it.

"Oh it counts. But technically it's a co-story, so that puts it into another category altogether."

"Which category would that be?" The Dark Magician blinks and suddenly looks as though he can't believe he just asked that. Dark Witch shakes her head and smirks at him.

"The 'let us never mention this again' category," Shadow's Mirror replies with a wry grin. "Although I must admit, as a crossover, the storyline did actually work out surprisingly well. All of the characters are in character and it's rather scary how easily the four shows crossed. It's actually quite a fun fic, once you get over the very unusual series combination."

"All right. So if you still want to write a crossover, why a Harry Potter/Yu-Gi-Oh! one?" Dark Witch winces as she says the words. "It's not a bad combination, necessarily. I know there are some stories in which it works, but it's just so…" She pauses in search of the right word.

"Overdone?" the Dark Magician offers helpfully. Dark Witch nods in agreement.

"I know. It's a popular combination, and I usually avoid that sort of thing, but in this case… Well there's one approach to it that I haven't seen done before and it fits in with something that I had in mind so I figured I might as well give it a try. If it doesn't work, then I'll just rewrite it and no one will ever see my failed attempt." Shadow's Mirror grins as the two Shadow Monsters nod.

"Fair enough," Dark Witch agrees.

"So, that's one new story on top of your ongoing ones. Do you have anything else planned? I believe that earlier you mentioned a co-story that you were currently working on?" The Dark Magician leans forward in interest as he changes the topic away from crossovers.

"Well… yes. I'm writing a Yu-Gi-Oh!/Nights Into Dreams crossover with my friend NightDragon." Shadow's Mirror grins as the Dark Magician turns pale in shock. "It's not as bad as it sounds. I'll admit that it's not a serious story, but it's not a parody. It's just a bit of fun. I write mainly Yu-Gi-Oh! and my friend writes mainly Nights Into Dreams, so that's how we've divided the writing. The end result is a story that is turning out to be very funny, but where the characters remain true to character throughout the story. It's actually shaping up to be a rather good story."

"I'll take your word for it." The Dark Magician looks unconvinced, but he asks his next question anyway. "How far into it are you? Is there still time for you to stop?"

Shadow's Mirror pokes her tongue out at him. "Very funny! We originally wrote it as a series of emails, so we have the whole storyline, including dialogue, actions and commentary. Now it's just a matter of converting it into story format. As in, putting it into proper sentences complete with grammar and spelling. It will probably be a while before that story's ready to appear in public."

"Wonderful." The Dark Magician is completely sincere… and apparently relieved that it won't be showing up online anytime soon. Dark Witch nudges him and he winces. "So is that all that you have planned at the moment?"

"Well, obviously I want to work on my ongoing stories as much as possible, so I'm trying not to come up with too much other stuff right now. I did have an idea for a Yu-Gi-Oh!/Inu-Yasha/NiGHTS crossover a few nights ago though, and I'm giving serious consideration about writing it soon."

"Please tell me you are joking…" The Dark Magician goes pale at the very idea. Dark Witch frowns at him and gives him a very less-than-discreet nudge that's apparently very hard, judging from his wince.

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Don't worry, it's going to be written as an Inu-Yasha fic. But I'm pretty sure that at least one yami will make an appearance in it. Probably Bakura. The storyline I have in mind would suit him best. Although I think the card required is actually in Yugi/Yami's deck…"

The Dark Magician blinks. "Yes, that would be a problem." He blinks again as a loud crash comes from somewhere downstairs. "Oh dear… Well, it seems as though we've come to the end of another show."

"In other words, you need to go see what the Dark Magician Girl has broken this time." Dark Witch smirks. The Dark Magician ignores her and smiles at Shadow's Mirror instead.

"Shadow's Mirror, thank you very much for joining us today. Before we go, is there anything else that you'd like to say?"

Shadow's Mirror suddenly grins very wickedly. "Actually, yes. Throughout my 'Conversations' series, I've mentioned on a few occasions that I couldn't have written certain sections of certain chapters without the assistance of my very dear friend Cheryl. That is absolutely true! She is a genius when it comes to picking up on things that I've either missed or haven't taken as far as they could go. I am truly in her debt and I don't dedicate stories to her nearly as often as I should."

Her wicked grin smoothes into a pleased smile as she looks directly into the camera. "I would also like to thank everyone who has ever read any of my stories, especially all of you wonderful readers who have also taken the time and trouble to let me know what you've thought of my writing. I truly appreciate and love every comment you've all made. Thank you all!"

"With two exceptions." The Dark Magician frowns and Dark Witch suddenly looks rather fierce.

Shadow's Mirror shrugs. "Naturally. I didn't appreciate the comments made by the two flamers who targeted 'Source' a month or so back. I'm not upset or angry about them though. They were too cowardly to leave their real names, and their comments were so ridiculous that they were laughable. Honest criticism is one thing, but flames that have no basis in fact, especially when they are written using vulgar terms that have no place on a public review board…" She shrugs dismissively again.

Dark Witch smirks and holds up two pieces of burning paper. "To those two flamers, this is what happens to flames around here." Dark Witch calmly drops them… right onto the Dark Magician's hat.

.

Cut! Okay, that's a wrap!


	3. The Third Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 1: I use the shortened forms of my fic titles in this, so here's the list to avoid any confusion. 'Source' - 'Another Source of Magic'. 'Hearts' - 'Hearts, Souls and Shadows'. 'Library' - 'The Shadow Library'. 'Shadows' - 'The Shadow Tournament'. Any others are named in full.

.

****

Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 3: The Third Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

.

**_Show aired June 6, 2004_**

The camera pans slowly around the library of the Dark Magician's tower, taking in the overflowing bookshelves and the stacks of books and papers spread across the floor like a sea of parchment. The camera's focus shifts to the two comfortably padded armchairs set before the cheerfully crackling fire. One of the chairs is occupied by a figure in a hooded black cloak. The other chair is empty.

"Um… Shadow's Mirror… where's the Dark Magician?" D Human looks out from behind the camera, a puzzled look on his face. "He does know that we're filming this tonight, right?"

Shadow's Mirror looks up, distracted from her thoughtful gazing into the fire's heart. "Hmm? Oh, yes. He knows. He was here earlier. Before you arrived. When he heard you come in, he said something about making sure that the interview wasn't 'interrupted by unwelcome visitors'.

D Human blinks, then sighs. "In other words, he's gone to set up an 'Anti Dark Witch' spell."

"Probably. Although you'd think he'd know by now that sort of thing never works the way he intends it to." Shadow's Mirror and D Human share a wry grin.

"That reminds me… when are you going to tell the audience why those two argue so much?"

Shadow's Mirror grins mischievously. "Oh, I'm sure it will work its way into a story sooner or later." Her look turns thoughtful. "I'd say probably towards the end of 'Hearts', since that's when it happened."

D Human sighs. "Yes. I remember." He stares down at the floor, apparently lost in his memories. Judging by his expression, his memories are not happy ones.

"While we're waiting, why don't you come sit down by the fire? It's rather cold tonight." Shadow's Mirror smiles gently at the Shadow Monster. D Human nods and joins her, sinking into the other chair with a relieved sigh.

"You're right. Even though it's only a small room, the fire isn't quite big enough to warm it completely. Darak usually enhances it with a spell… Oh!" D Human suddenly gasps, looking horrified. He gives Shadow's Mirror a sheepish look. "I'm sorry. I forgot I'm not supposed to call him that."

"That's okay. I've slipped it in a few times myself. I like to keep the audience on their toes." Shadow's Mirror winks at D Human, who grins back.

"You do that a lot, don't you? Include small clues about things that are coming up, or things that are going to happen in other stories."

Shadow's Mirror laughs and nods. "Yes, I guess it's my worst habit. Well, that and linking stories together. I just can't help myself! When I figure out something that's coming up, I just can't keep it a secret! I have to tell someone! But at the same time, I don't like ruining the surprise. So I write a hint in whatever chapter I happen to be writing at the time. Sometimes it's something so small that I don't even realise it's there until the final proofread! Other times…" she pauses, suddenly looking uncomfortable.

"Other times, it's a written version of a large mallet." D Human smirks.

Shadow's Mirror winces. "Er… yes."

D Human's eyes sparkle with mischief as he leans forward. "What's your most obvious so far?"

A laugh is Shadow's Mirror immediate response, but her answer isn't far behind it. "In chapter 4 of 'Source', Bakura complains to Ryou about him being overprotective. He says," Shadow's Mirror snaps her fingers and Bakura's voice suddenly fills the room, speaking his lines. "'I don't need a baby-sitter. What do you think I am? Some pathetic little stray that needs looking after? Some defenceless little girl that needs protecting from the big bad world? Some pitiful, helpless human without any… magic…'" Shadow's Mirror's eyes gleam as she sits back, waiting for D Human's reaction.

D Human blinks. Then he bursts out laughing. "Oh! You put everything that he was going to become in that one section!" He starts ticking them off on his fingers. "'Baby-sitter' refers to him becoming a chibi. 'Pathetic little stray' is him as a kitten. 'Defenceless little girl' is him as Kura… although I don't know if I'd call her 'defenceless' exactly… What she did to those guys who kept asking her to dance was rather painful. But the rest referred to him as he was at the time, a regular human. The only thing you didn't put in was the Christmas part." D Human looks at Shadow's Mirror in awe.

Shadow's Mirror blushes at the look, then smirks. "I did and I didn't. That line about the 'defenceless little girl' also refers to Morgan, but at the time I wrote it, I didn't know that she was going to be in that story, or that I was going to have those Christmas chapters. But I knew that Morgan existed and I knew that Bakura would meet her. So, when I wrote that line in 'Source' 4, I included the part about 'the big bad world' as a reference to Morgan. I just didn't know at the time that she was going to be in that story."

"So, if she wasn't going to be in 'Source', when was Bakura going to meet her?" D Human looks at Shadow's Mirror in confusion. The girl grins.

"Morgan's part in things is bigger than it seems. She was originally supposed to be introduced in a lead-up story to 'Shadows', along with her Fire Sorcerer card."

D Human nods slowly as he thinks it through. "Your plans changed."

"Yes. It was coming up to Christmas and I started noticing Christmas-themed fanfics. I decided to try my hand at one, but I needed a storyline. My original plot was simpler, and shorter. I started writing it. I even had a working title for it, 'Bakura's Christmas Gift', catchy huh?" She grins. "It was supposed to be about eight pages long. By the second page, I knew I'd done it again. I'd rambled my way into an unexpected plot development."

"That happens a lot with you." D Human smirks as Shadow's Mirror laughs and nods.

"Yes, it certainly does! Anyway, at that point I just thought it was going to be longer… and late. I knew I wouldn't have it finished in time for Christmas. That annoyed me."

"So when did you realise what you were writing?"

A distant look enters Shadow's Mirror's eyes as she gazes into the fire, remembering. "I had pulled an all-nighter. I'd gone from page six to page eighteen in one sitting. That's rare for me. When I sat down to write again the next night, I started off by reading over what I had so far, as I always do. By the time I'd finished reading, I knew that it was based on 'Source', which I hadn't intended. But it wasn't until I did the first full read through, after I'd finished writing it, that I realised it was in fact part of 'Source'."

D Human nods. "So that's why you posted eight chapters at once. Because you wrote them as one story. I had wondered."

Shadow's Mirror grins sheepishly. "I got a few comments about that. Apparently it's customary to upload one chapter at a time. I learned my lesson though. I'm uploading 'Conversations' more slowly."

"I like that story. Although I'm not in it yet." D Human pouts for a moment, then blinks. "Wait a minute. Do you mean that you're holding out on the audience? Do you have chapters ready to go that you haven't posted yet?" He frowns unhappily at Shadow's Mirror, who blushes slightly.

"It's not like that! Really! I'm posting chapter 15 as this goes to air. I have the rest of it, chapters 16 to 20, in rough draft form. So I'll be uploading one every couple of days until the story's..."

When Shadow's Mirror pauses, D Humans helpfully offers, "Complete?" He blinks in surprise when Shadow's Mirror shakes her head.

"Not exactly… It's not really that kind of story."

D Human looks very confused. "Not the kind of story that can be completed? What do you mean?"

"I mean that the story will 'finish', but it won't be 'complete'." Seeing D Human's continued confusion, Shadow's Mirror explains. "You see, it's the way it's written. 'Conversations' is literally a series of scenes that seem random at first, but eventually they weave together to form a story. Only, it's not the whole thing. It's as though I've taken a story, then chosen a few scenes that represent the key parts of it. So you get the overall idea of what the story is about, but nothing is gone into in full detail. Some things are resolved, some aren't. Some things are mentioned once and then they don't appear again. So when the last chapter is posted, there will be questions left unanswered. There will be things that haven't been explained or haven't been done or that hint at things that aren't told. That's what this story is like. That's the price that is paid for writing it in this way."

D Human slowly nods. "Instead of the complete story, we're really just getting the highlights." He frowns slightly and looks at her. "You wouldn't be satisfied with that," he adds with certainty.

Shadow's Mirror gives him a warm smile. "You know me too well. You're right. I have no wish to ruin the story by adding in chapters that don't fit the rest of it, but my first draft of chapter 19 gave me an idea. It was no good for 'Conversations'. Not enough humour and too much angst. But there was nothing wrong with it as a story overall. So, I'm toying with the idea of a sequel to 'Conversations'. The working title is 'Consequences'."

"The consequences of what happens in each chapter of 'Conversations'?" D Human starts to smile, obviously liking the idea.

"Exactly." Shadow's Mirror pauses, staring reflectively into the fire. "Some of the chapters didn't really have consequences though. Others had more than I could cover, within a single chapter, in as much detail as I'd like. So it might not end up a series of chapters. It might end up a series of companion stories. I won't know until I start working on it, and that won't be for a little while. I really want to get some of my other ongoing stories finished off before I start on anything new."

"I can't say I blame you! How many is it now, nine?" D Human winces at the thought.

"Nine ongoing fanfics, yes. But that's not all I write. I have four co-stories and five other stories ongoing, as well as an art thingy I've been trying to get done, and I've been neglecting them all shamefully while I've been focused on fanfiction. It's very hard to balance writing fanfiction with doing other things, sometimes." Shadow's Mirror sighs heavily. D Human nods in sympathy.

"Sounds like you're busy. Will you have any time at all to write for a while?"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Are you kidding? I always find time for writing, no matter how busy I am! 'Consequences' will be easy from here on. I just have to proofread, spellcheck and reformat each chapter before uploading it. I can do that in my sleep. And I'm pretty sure I did once… I don't remember uploading one of the earlier 'Source' chapters and I woke up with my head on my keyboard and the chapter online. That was weird." She blinks and shakes the thought away. "Anyway, apart from that, everything else is under control right now. I've started 'Hearts', 'Library' almost boiled over last week and is currently off the heat while I test it for consistency, the rest are currently simmering away nicely, and I've sorted out what I need to tie up in 'Source' 29… all seventeen pages of it…"

D Human blinks, looking stunned. "Seventeen pages?" Shadow's Mirror nods and gives a wry grin.

"Yes. That surprised me too. I didn't think I'd left quite so much unexplained. Mind you, a lot of that is just for reference, so I know exactly what I have to cover and at what point in the story it happened. I have a feeling I'm going to be doing a lot of flashbacks though." She sighs. "I hate flashbacks."

"I'm curious to see what you say about Bakura's parents. You haven't said much about them so far, but they don't sound very nice." D Human frowns at the thought, but Shadow's Mirror looks thoughtful.

"I don't think I'll be saying much more about them than I already have. I really need to keep things general when it comes to Ancient Egypt and Bakura's past. Yami's past too, for that matter."

"I thought… isn't there information available about that sort of thing now?" D Human looks puzzled.

Shadow's Mirror sighs and nods. "Yes… and no. The information comes from the Japanese manga version, which has just finished in Japan. The problem is, my stories are based on the American dubbed anime version. At least, for the most part. I use 'Ryou', 'Malik' and 'Isis' out of personal preference." At D Human's smirk, Shadow's Mirror shrugs and grins. "Well, I had to call Bakura and Marik's lights something, didn't I? As for 'Isis'… It's an Egyptian name and I've never seen any reason for the change. Also, it's a lot easier to spell than 'Ishizu'. It has a better ring to it too. 'Isis Ishtar', 'Ishizu Ishtar', no contest really. But getting back to the information and version problem… there's a huge difference between the Japanese manga and the American anime. By the time the series ends in America, there's no telling what will change. I don't want to have to come back to these stories in a year or so's time and rewrite them. At the same time, I don't want them to become Alternate Universe fics simply because I got my facts wrong. So I'm sticking with the things that I know for certain."

D Human shifts as though suddenly uncomfortable. He glances at Shadow's Mirror, then looks away again, biting his lower lip as his whole body tenses. Shadow's Mirror studies him for a moment, then smiles wryly. "Whatever it is you have to say, you'd better say it… before you explode or something."

"Well… it's just that… what if something you've already written turns out to be… wrong?" He stares into the fire as though it's the most fascinating thing in the Shadow Realm.

Shadow's Mirror also looks into the fire as she contemplates her response. "It's happened," she admits quietly. "I've fixed what mistakes I could. Things that definitely were mistakes. But there are a few things that I don't see in that light."

She pauses for a moment. "A few months ago, I learned something that shattered my plans for one of my ongoing stories. I found out that what I had planned for 'Hearts' would turn it, 'Source', 'Shadows' and 'Library', at least, into Alternate Universe fics if I went through with it. There is something in the Japanese manga that contradicts what I was going to do. I gave serious consideration to scrapping 'Hearts', but I realised that there was a way to work around it. In fact, I can use it to my advantage and tie in a few other things at the same time. I like that. So, it worked out for the best. The same thing happened a week ago, when I learned something about one of the Shadow Monsters that contradicted something I'd written. I couldn't change it, so that left finding an explanation for it. I did. Actually, it's one of the things that tie in with the solution to the 'Hearts' problem. That worked in nicely."

Shadow's Mirror looks over at D Human and smiles. "I'm only human, so I'm not perfect. But I do try to keep my stories as in-character and as factual as possible."

D Human smirks. "Except for Bakura."

"Including Bakura, actually. If he acts out-of-character, it's because of something in the story that's affected him and how he acts. For example, if he's gentle with Ryou, then it's because he's come to realise, either earlier in the story or in a connected story, that he wants to be gentle with Ryou. If he seems nicer in my stories, it's because something has happened to make him nicer. I won't always say what that something is. Take 'Source' for example. I start the story six months after Battle City and Bakura has spent that time learning to live in peace with Ryou. Of course he's changed. That sort of thing would change anyone. It's not something I've just done on a whim or done so his character fits a storyline that I want to write. I don't work that way. If a storyline has a character acting oddly, then I either write in a reason for it, or I change the storyline. Every action has a consequence. It's simple cause and effect. It's also based on the anime. Look at the way Yami is when he first appears. It isn't until he and Yugi start working together that he becomes the nice Yami that we're familiar with. It's as though he and Yugi are influencing each other's personality. A little light going into the darkness and a little darkness going into the light. Yami becomes less 'you have trespassed on my soul and must be punished' and Yugi becomes more confident."

"So how do you explain Téa's change from 'friendship girl' in Duelist Kingdom to 'sarcasm queen' in the Virtual World?" D Human raises an eyebrow as he challenges Shadow's Mirror.

"Well, she had been controlled by Marik for a while at that point, and he hadn't completely released her. It's possible that his attitude was influencing her slightly." Shadow's Mirror smirks at D Human.

"Okay, I'll give you that one," D Human reluctantly agrees.

"Gee… thanks…" Shadow's Mirror shakes her head, chuckling softly.

"So what about the relationships or pairings? You seem to be focusing on Bakura/Ryou and Marik/Malik but there have been hints of Isis/Shadi, Isis/Seto, Mai/Joey, Seto/Joey, Téa/Seto and Tristan/Serenity in 'Conversations'. There's a lot going on in that one."

"You know, it sounds bad when they're listed all together like that! Although… you actually missed a couple that come up in later chapters." Shadow's Mirror grins and winks at D Human, who laughs. "I could run through them all, if you like?"

D Human's eyes light up and he leans forward, grinning eagerly. "Oh yes please!"

Shadow's Mirror laughs again. "Ah, the eagerness of a Shadow Monster. All right then. Let me think… Marik and Malik, now there's a pairing that I could devote several stories and a number of interviews to and still not completely cover why I write them the way that I do. Basically, they are two of my main sources of potential chaos. I covered some of the reasons for their changes in behaviour in two of my earliest fanfics 'Lost' and 'Found', but there is more to tell. I'm just waiting for the right time."

D Human nods and Shadow's Mirror moves on to the next pairing. "Isis and Shadi… that one was really just in there for comic relief, but there was a scene in the anime that put it in my mind to begin with. I don't think I'll be taking it anywhere in particular, but it may pop up as a running gag."

When D Human finishes laughing, Shadow's Mirror grins and continues, "Isis and Seto are just friends in 'Conversations', but I'll leave it at that because I don't want to give away too much. I do have a story idea for them both, but then again I have a lot of ideas so I might not ever end up writing it."

Shadow's Mirror shrugs and moves on. "Mai and Joey… well that one is rather obviously based on the anime, as is Tristan and Serenity. I'm not planning anything in particular with Tristan, but I do have something with Joey in my 'not for public display because it is too embarrassing' folder, and it's one of the ones I'm considering rewriting. So that one you might get to see at some point."

D Human smiles happily and Shadow's Mirror grins back at him. "Seto and Téa is something that my mind pointed out to me while watching several episodes of the anime. Yes, sometimes I even scare myself. I don't want to say too much because I'm planning on doing something with this… eventually."

As D Human nods, Shadow's Mirror looks thoughtful. "Seto and Joey was about challenge, power and contest. Nothing more. That's one of the gaps I have to fill in with 'Consequences'."

She smiles. "Finally, Bakura and Ryou are my favourite characters. I write them together because I can't really see either of them with any other character. Bakura is way too possessive to willingly share Ryou with anyone else, and as the Spirit of the Ring he and Ryou are kind of a two-for-one deal anyway. I don't know if anyone could put up with him for longer than five minutes, apart from Ryou!"

"Good point."

"I thought so. Anyway, 'Source' is 'their' story. I'm starting to think that it will have a sequel, purely because I have another Bakura/Ryou story that's currently in that 'too embarrassing' folder I mentioned earlier. I'm thinking of reworking it. I'm debating with myself over it… and I think I'm winning. But I also came up with a story in the week that I was offline recently." Shadow's Mirror pauses.

D Human studies her for a moment. "What's wrong? You don't look happy. Was the idea that bad?"

Shadow's Mirror gazes into the fire. When she speaks, her voice is very soft. "It wasn't an idea. It was a story. A complete story. It came to me word for word late one night. I didn't write it down because it doesn't fit the way that I see Bakura and Ryou. But it hasn't gone away. It's haunting me. I keep seeing the image of Bakura standing over Ryou, laughing as his light…" Shadow's Mirror pauses abruptly and sighs. "If I did write it, I'd have to rate it 'R'. The storyline… it's intense."

"Angst?" D Human asks in obvious concern. Shadow's Mirror's mood seems to have darkened slightly.

"Oh yeah." Shadow's Mirror frowns into the fire. "A part of me doesn't want to write it. But another part of me is saying that I need to. I have a feeling that it's connected to 'Source' somehow. I'm just not sure what the connection is yet." She shakes off her dark mood and smiles at D Human. "But anyway, I have to finish 'Source' first! And a couple of my others, for that matter. I really should get to work…" She looks around, her frown returning although this time it's more concerned than thoughtful. "I wonder where the Dark Magician is? It's almost time for me to go, and he's still not back."

D Human frowns too as he realises how much time has passed. "You're right. I don't like this. He's been gone too long. Something is not right." He stands and starts for the door. "I'll go look for him!"

Shadow's Mirror jumps to her feet. "Wait a minute, I'll come with you! I'm an Authoress. I can do all sorts of useful things."

When D Human opens the front door, they both blink in surprise. The Shadow Realm is covered with a thick layer of snow and a wild rainstorm is raging, with the wind howling through the trees in the nearby forest like a pack of Gigatech Wolves. D Human sighs. "All day, when it hasn't been snowing, it's been raining." He peers out into the storm, then frowns. "That's odd…" He thrusts his arm out into the driving rain and winces. "Ow!" Pulling his arm back in, he rubs it, still wincing. "Oh great. Looks like we can add 'prickly hail' to the growing list of weird weather conditions we've been having lately."

Shadow's Mirror frowns. "That could explain why the Dark Magician hasn't returned. He might have had to take shelter when the storm hit."

D Human freezes as his eyes widen in shock. "Wait a minute… he went out to set an 'Anti Dark Witch' spell, remember? What if… Oh no… What if Dark Witch is trapped out in the open in this storm? I have to find her!" He starts to head out into the storm, but Shadow's Mirror catches his arm.

"Whoa! Hold on, D Human! I know you love her but you can't just go rushing out there! It's too dangerous! Those hailstones are doing damage like they were the Fairy Meteor Crush! Let's think this through for a moment. Where would the Dark Magician have gone?"

"Into the forest. He knows that's the way Dark Witch always takes when she visits him."

"So that's where they probably are now. The trees will give them some protection from the hail or… isn't there a cave in there somewhere?" Shadow's Mirror frowns as she tries to remember details.

"I… Yes! There's a big cave near Trent's clearing. He and the Ancient Tree of Enlightenment go there whenever there's a…" realisation dawns in his eyes and he looks out at the wild weather, "really bad storm…" He looks at Shadow's Mirror. "Do you think they could be there?"

"Give me a moment to deal with this weather and we'll go see." Shadow's Mirror raises her head up to the sky. Her brown eyes flash silver and the hail begins to die down, although the rest of the storm continues on. She smiles slightly as she turns to D Human. "There are advantages to being an Authoress, but I can't go too far. If I stopped the storm completely, it would be unrealistic. Let's go!"

D Human nods eagerly and together he and Shadow's Mirror head off into the storm in search of the Dark Magician and Dark Witch.

.

to be continued…


	4. The Fourth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This chapter includes a quote from a review I received for 'Conversations'-Part 1. The original used asterisks, however since asterisks no longer work in stories, I've had to use :: instead.

.

****

Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 4: The Fourth Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

.

**__**

Show aired June 8, 2004

Trent, the Ancient Tree of Enlightenment, the Dark Magician and Dark Witch look up from their card game as two figures enter the cave. "Ah, Shadow's Mirror and D Human! What a pleasant surprise! What brings you all the way out here in such weather?" The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment smiles as he greets the two newcomers. Then he frowns slightly. "Oh my, you're both soaking wet. Come further into the cave, where it's drier."

"Thank you Ancient…" Shadow's Mirror's reply is interrupted by D Human's sudden rush into the cave. He runs over to Dark Witch and drops down on one knee to hug her tightly. She squeaks in shock as she finds herself squeezed in a surprisingly powerful grip. Shadow's Mirror blinks. "Um… D Human… I think Dark Witch would like to be able to breathe…"

"Oh. Right." D Human's cheeks burn with embarrassment as he releases Dark Witch. "Sorry about that. I was just so worried about you! Are you okay?" He looks anxiously at Dark Witch as she straightens her dress and shakes her wings, both of which have become slightly rumpled due to D Human's enthusiastic greeting.

"Honestly, D Human, you really need to remember your own strength! I think you almost broke one of my feathers that time." Dark Witch looks particularly cross for a moment before she sighs and pats the now forlorn Shadow Monster on the arm. "Oh, come now, you know I'm not really mad at you. Stop pouting. Come on. Give me a little smile. There, that's more like it!" She grins at D Human as her teasing finally wins a smile out of him. "Don't worry, dear. I'm fine," she adds quietly. D Human nods.

"You do know that you missed the show, don't you?" Shadow's Mirror grins at the Dark Magician, who winces at the less-than-subtle reminder.

"Ah. Yes. I'm afraid it was unavoidable. I was on my way back to the tower when the storm started. I was going to brave it, but I heard…" he pauses suddenly, glancing across the cave to where Dark Witch is now scolding D Human for getting her all wet.

"Let me guess, you set a trap, Dark Witch got caught by it and you had to free her so she didn't get caught by the storm as well, am I right?" Shadow's Mirror's grin becomes a smirk as the Dark Magician reluctantly nods, confirming her guess.

"It was a perfectly good trap too. Spellbinding Circle. She would have been there for at least a few hours." He sighs, looking disappointed. "It's so rare that she actually falls for one of my traps."

Dark Witch, having overheard the comment, sniffs disdainfully. "Oh please! If it hadn't been for that sudden shift in the wind, I would never have been caught at all! I was flying, for shadows' sakes! The trap was nowhere near me!" She winced. "Then the storm came up and I was blown right into it."

Shadow's Mirror and D Human both wince in sympathy. "Ouch. Were you hurt?"

Dark Witch shakes her head at Shadow's Mirror's question. "My pride got a little bruised, that's all."

"I turned back when I felt the wind shift and heard Dark Witch yell. The storm came up so suddenly. If I'd known it was coming, I wouldn't have wasted my lovely trap." The Dark Magician sighed. "I arrived just as the storm started. We managed to get in here without getting too wet. Then Trent and the Ancient Tree of Enlightenment joined us. They barely got here before the hail started. We've been playing cards ever since." He gestured towards the game in progress. "Would you care to play until the storm eases?"

D Human looks interested. "What's the game?" He glances at Dark Witch and his eyes gleam as a wicked smirk plays across his face.

"Not what you're thinking, that's for sure! I said I'd never play Go Fish with you again, and I meant it!" Dark Witch glares at him and D Human sighs. Everyone else blinks.

"What's wrong with playing Go Fish? It's a little boring perhaps but surely…" Shadow's Mirror falls silent as D Human bursts out laughing and Dark Witch smirks. "I'm missing something here, aren't I?"

"The game's fine, it's just that D Human only likes one particular version of it." Dark Witch smiles with deceptive innocence and waits.

Shadow's Mirror, knowing the female Shadow Monster all too well, doesn't ask the obvious question.

Dark Witch continues to wait.

The Dark Magician twitches. D Human smirks. The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment studies his cards and frowns as he mutters something about the worst streak of luck he's ever had. Trent looks from Dark Witch to Shadow's Mirror a few times and then sighs. "All right! I'll do it!" He turns to Dark Witch. "I know I'll regret asking but… what version of Go Fish does D Human like to play?"

Dark Witch smirks. "Strip Go Fish." As everyone but D Human blinks and tries to get their minds around the concept, she adds, "What's more, he always cheats."

"Hey!" D Human frowns at her. "I don't cheat! How could you say that?" He pouts, looking hurt.

"Because no one could possibly play as badly as you do!" Dark Witch shakes her head. "Although why you'd want to lose every single game is beyond me!" She eyes him suspiciously as Shadow's Mirror groans softly.

"Okay, can we please change the topic now? Before we lose our PG rating…"

The Dark Magician blinks. "We still have it? I thought we lost it during our first show when Bakura…" He trails off, noticing Shadow's Mirror's glare. "Ah… Yes… I probably shouldn't mention it again…"

Shadow's Mirror starts to reply, but sneezes instead. "Oh, great…"

Dark Witch frowns. "I'm not surprised. Just look at you! You and D Human are both soaked through! You'll be lucky to avoid getting colds from this."

D Human looks shyly at her. "If I get sick, will you look after me, like you did that other time?"

Dark Witch looks away, her face suddenly a rather interesting shade of red. "Maybe." D Human smiles happily at her response.

Shadow's Mirror frowns. "Well I don't have time to get sick. I'm way too busy! I know, we'll make a nice fire. That will warm us all up!"

Trent and the Ancient Tree of Enlightenment both look rather worried at that announcement. "Um… I hate to mention this but… we're somewhat allergic to fire."

"Well… that's one way of putting it…" the Ancient Tree of Enlightenment murmurs with a wry smile.

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Don't worry. I promise that no trees will be harmed by this particular fire. See? I came prepared!" She holds up a piece of paper and winks. "Okay, now all we need is the Dark Magician's hat and a spark."

As the Dark Magician starts to protest, Dark Witch beams. "I'll provide the spark!"

The Dark Magician gives her an annoyed look. "You would." He turns his attention to the piece of paper. "What is that?"

Shadow's Mirror's smirk transforms into a serene smile. "This is the latest flame I've received. My third so far, although it's the first one for 'Conversations'. I said on my page that all flames would be used to set fire to the Dark Magician's hat, and I meant it! Now hand over that hat!"

Dark Witch frowns. "May I see that before you burn it? Thanks." She takes the piece of paper and reads it, then blinks and reads it again. "Um… What exactly is this?"

"May I?" The Dark Magician accepts the paper and studies it carefully for a moment. "Hmm… The first part appears to have been written in some sort of ancient language…"

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "Not exactly. Although it has been around for a while. It's called 'leet'. I'm not exactly fluent, but I have come across it before." Her eyes gleam. "You know, if you're going to flame someone, it's usually a good idea to do it in a language that is recognisable by most people."

"True. Where's the fun in insulting someone who doesn't understand a word you're saying?" Dark Witch smirks, then peers over the Dark Magician's arm to see the paper. "So, what's it say?" She and the other Shadow Monsters blink in surprise as Shadow's Mirror starts laughing. "Something funny?"

Shadow's Mirror gets herself back under control, although she's still grinning. "Sorry, it's just that this one is the funniest flame I've received so far."

The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment smiles and sets his cards aside. "Then perhaps it would make an interesting topic for discussion?"

Dark Witch smirks at him. "You just don't want to admit how badly you've been playing so far."

"That is a factor for consideration, yes." The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment looks down at his cards and shudders. "Abysmal. I do believe someone might have cursed me at some point this week."

D Human nods. "Probably. That's happened to me a few times, too."

Dark Witch shifts impatiently, her full attention on Shadow's Mirror. "So, are you going to take us through this flame or what?"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Oh, all right then. Let's sit down and I'll go through it with you."

As they sit down, D Human suddenly starts bouncing up and down excitedly. "Oh! I have an idea! Why don't we tape this? The Dark Magician can play it in one of his shows at some point." He stops bouncing as he realises something, then looks curiously at Shadow's Mirror. "You can do that, right?"

"Oh most definitely!" With a wave of her hand, a small tape recorder appears in front of her. Shadow's Mirror winks at everyone and settles herself comfortably on the cave floor as the others do the same. When they're all sitting in a loose circle, the girl looks thoughtfully down at the piece of paper.

"I'm starting to suspect that I'm being flamed repeatedly by the same person. This was written by someone calling themselves 'Legendary Bunny'. My first flame was submitted by someone calling themselves 'Mystic Bunny Piper'. It strikes me as an odd coincidence that I'd be flamed by two bunnies. But then again, maybe they took offence at the rabbit I wrote into one of my Inu-Yasha fics."

She shrugs. "All three flames have been similar in other ways too. They were all insulting, both to my intelligence and to the English language, and they all used language that is highly inappropriate for a public review system. They also were all so ridiculous that I couldn't take any of them seriously. A review based on a genuine concern or criticism of my writing, written in polite tones, will make me stop to consider the reviewer's point. A flame that is so ridiculous that I have to wonder if the flamer even read the chapter they're flaming though… I normally just have a good laugh and then delete them."

The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment nods in his usual slow and thoughtful way. "Yet, you did not do that with this one. Might I inquire as to your reason?"

Shadow's Mirror nods, all signs of her previous good humour suddenly gone as she becomes serious. "This one was a little different. I regard it as a flame because of the way it's been written, but it raises a point that I feel compelled to respond to."

"So, let's hear it then! Quote away!" D Human grins and the others nod in agreement.

"All right, here's what 'Legendary Bunny' had to say about chapter 1 of my fic, 'Conversations'." Shadow's Mirror clears her throat and starts reading. "'::3v1l g0th1c g14r3:: you should be ashamed of yourself children read this stuff ::feh::'" When she finishes, she looks around at the stunned faces and grins. "Any comments?"

"Where's the swearing?" As all eyes turn to Trent, his bark seems to darken. "You said it had 'inappropriate language'…"

"Oh! The other two had swearing, with this one it's the first part. It's written in an Internet 'language' called 'leet' or 'leetspeak'. It was originally used solely by gamers and hackers, but it caught on and now it's also used in some forums, chat rooms and messaging services. The thing is, like any language, it has rules that say how it should be used and what's right and wrong in it. It's bad form to use it in this particular way. Also, if you're going to use it, you really should try to get it right."

The Dark Magician blinks. "It is incorrect in some way?"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Uh huh. I could make out the first two words, but not the third. So I took it over to a leet translation site. Yes, there really is such a thing. It turns out that there's a good reason why I couldn't decipher the third word. The flamer got it wrong."

Everyone chuckles. "So what's it say, and what's it supposed to say?" D Human smirks.

"I think it's supposed to say '::evil gothic glare::' but, according to the rules of leet, it actually says '::evil gothic giare::'. The flamer messed up the spelling." Shadow's Mirror grins as everyone chuckles.

"Hmm… what exactly is an 'evil gothic glare'?" The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment's voice is puzzled. "I have seen an 'evil glare'. At least, I am fairly certain that Bakura's expression the time he was facing that Man Eater Bug qualifies as such. But 'gothic'…" The other Shadow Monsters are just as confused.

"I think it means that the flamer is dressed all in black, wearing dramatic make-up and glaring at me." Shadow's Mirror shrugs.

"Sounds like Yami, except that he'd never flame you. Bakura maybe, Kaiba definitely, but not you." D Human's comment sets everyone laughing.

The Dark Magician is the first to calm down again. He looks curiously at Shadow's Mirror. "You said that this reviewer had a valid point that you felt compelled to reply to. What is it?"

Shadow's Mirror immediately shakes her head. "No, I said it was a point, I didn't say that it was a valid one. It isn't. That's why I want to respond to it."

The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment nods and gestures with one of his branches. "The floor is yours."

"Now what would she want with a cave floor? It's just dirt and stone." D Human frowns at the tree as everyone else winces and sweatdrops.

"He meant that Shadow's Mirror is free to speak without any interruptions. So stop interrupting!" Dark Witch whispers, loudly enough to be heard on the other side of the massive cave.

D Human blinks and frowns at the tree. "Well, why didn't you just say that?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs and intervenes before D Human gets himself into more trouble. "Anyway, according to this flame, I should be ashamed of myself and children read this particular story. I'm assuming that the flamer thinks I should be ashamed of myself because the flamer believes that my 'Conversations' fic isn't appropriate for any children who may be reading it."

The Dark Magician considers for a moment. "What do you believe?"

Shadow's Mirror shakes her head. "The only thing I'm ashamed about with this fic is the amount of time it's taken me to write it. Considering how quickly I can get it written when I put my mind to it, I should have finished it ages ago." She winces. "Apart from that, the story follows all the rules of grammar, spelling, punctuation and writing in general. The characters are as in-character as I can get them and I've done my best to keep it lighthearted and entertaining. So I think it actually sets a good example for anyone reading it. As for content, there is absolutely no nudity, drug use or…"

Everyone blinks as she pauses. "You've thought of something?" D Human asks in surprise.

"I was just wondering if Marik mentioning that he's sore from being hit by a group of women would be classed as 'violence'."

"Not to Marik." Dark Witch's wry comment earns a laugh from the group.

"Does he just mention it or do you describe them hitting him?" the Dark Magician asks quietly

"He just mentions it. Ah! Good point! That does make a difference. In that case, the only violence in 'Conversations' is during the argument between Joey and Seto, when Joey pulls Seto around to face him." Shadow's Mirror grins wryly. "At least, that's all that's written in. I'm not convinced that Joey and Tristan's meeting, after Joey's phone call to Serenity, was exactly calm and polite…"

After D Human finally stops laughing, apparently finding that line far more hilarious than any of the others, Shadow's Mirror included, Dark Witch looks at Shadow's Mirror and raises an eyebrow. "So what does that leave?"

"The fun stuff!" D Human's cheerful comment sends Trent off into a series of wheezy laughs, rather like gusts of wind through leaves. It's several moments before the large tree finally regains control.

Shadow's Mirror somehow manages to keep from laughing aloud, contenting herself with a smirk. "In other words, adult themes and… physical intimacy." She says the last words very quickly as her cheeks flood with colour. Dark Witch starts laughing.

"You can't even say that without blushing, so I doubt it's a problem." She smirks at Shadow's Mirror, whose blush deepens.

"Let's just say that there's a reason why I don't write romantic scenes. You'll see that reason in one of the later chapters," Shadow's Mirror adds with a sigh.

"About the fun stuff…" D Human prods her when she doesn't continue right away.

Shadow's Mirror smiles an odd little smile that's half serenity and half mystery. "D Human! I'm shocked! It's a PG story! As if I'd put anything like that in and then rate it PG!" The Shadow Monsters all blink in surprise.

"Um… we are talking about 'Conversations', right?" D Human asks in complete bewilderment.

Shadow's Mirror nods. "There is nothing written into the story that goes beyond what is acceptable for a PG rating. But whether it reads that way depends entirely on the mind of the reader."

"Huh?" D Human still looks completely bewildered but the others gasp as they get it.

"She means that every reader will read into the story as much, or as little, as their minds allow them to," Dark Witch explains.

D Human thinks about that for a moment and then his eyes widen. "Oh!" He smirks. "I guess my mind is really helpful!" Dark Witch bursts out laughing as the others sweatdrop.

The Ancient Tree of Enlightenment suddenly speaks. "In that case, for this flamer to have become so incensed about the story…"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Yes, that's what makes the flame so funny. In order to become offended by it, the flamer must have read more into it than I've actually written! Especially since the flame was for the first chapter. That was the one where Ryou helps Bakura with a splinter. That's all it's about. I state it as a fact. If the flamer's read more into it, then it's a measure of their mind, not my story."

The Dark Magician looks thoughtful. "Don't you also mention in the story's summary that it is rated PG due to suggestive dialogue?"

"Yes. What gets me is that the flamer saw that and read the story anyway! I even say it in the Author's Note for that chapter! I couldn't possibly state it any clearer than I have." Shadow's Mirror shakes her head, but then she grins. "I've even had a couple of people ask me where the suggestive dialogue is!"

D Human bursts out laughing. Shadow's Mirror waits for him to finish before continuing. "So, you can see why I consider this to be a flame. Not only is it an attack on my story and myself for writing it, but it's completely wrong! Also… 'feh' is a comment, like 'oh' or 'whatever', it isn't an action so it shouldn't have been in action quotes." The Shadow Monsters all nod in agreement.

"Well, I believe you summed that up nicely. It will make a fine addition to one of the shows." The Dark Magician smiles contentedly, but his smile fades slightly as Shadow's Mirror looks over at him.

Shadow's Mirror locks gazes with the Dark Magician. "Yes. Now then, I believe we were in the middle of something… Are you going to hand over your hat quietly, or do we have to do this the hard way?"

"Oh, let's do it the hard way!" Dark Witch bounces eagerly in her place as the Dark Magician sighs.

"Honestly… what is this fascination that you both have with setting my hat on fire?" He gives them both a look of mild irritation as he starts removing his hat.

Shadow's Mirror and Dark Witch look at each other for a moment before shrugging and replying at the same time. "It's fun."

With that settled, D Human looks around the group. "So, the storm's still going on… Didn't someone mention cards earlier? If we can't play Strip Go Fish, how about a good game of Snap?"

The Dark Magician deals out the cards and they begin to play as the storm howls outside and the Dark Magician's hat burns merrily, casting a cheerful glow and a cosy warmth throughout the cave.

.

to be continued…


	5. The Fifth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

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****

Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 5: The Fifth Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

.

**_Show aired July 3, 2004_**

The show begins with the by-now-familiar scene of the library/office of the Dark Magician's tower home. As usual, the camera focuses on the cheerful fire crackling away in the grate and then pans back to show the overpadded chair set in front of the fireplace, and the purple figure sitting in it. The Dark Magician smiles into the camera.

"Welcome to another episode of 'Interview with an Authoress' where I, the Dark Magician, discuss the latest news and events with the Authoress, Shadow's Mirror." The camera pans across to the other chair in the room. The empty chair. The Dark Magician blinks. "That's odd… she was here a moment ago…"

"She vanished while you were doing your intro." D Human's voice comes from off-screen. The Dark Magician blinks at the news. Before he can comment though, a flash of light fills the room.

"Sorry about that, I had to duck away for a moment. I'm chatting with Vash is my Angel so I'm going to be coming and going for a while." Shadow's Mirror grins at the Dark Magician who blinks back at her.

"I thought I knew all of the Shadow Monsters by now…" he mutters.

Shadow's Mirror bursts out laughing. "Oh no, she's not from around here. Vash is my Angel, Vash for short, is a fellow Authoress. Well, technically… she has written a story but it's not online yet. It's a very good story too. She's also my best friend, the one who helped me with my 'Conversations' stories and she's partly to blame for my latest Yu-Gi-Oh! fic too. She's multi-talented!" Shadow's Mirror chuckles.

The Dark Magician smiles. "I look forward to hearing more about her story when it's online." Then his mind registers the rest of Shadow's Mirror's cheerful chatter and his eyes light up. He leans forward eagerly. "You're updating?" His excitement fades slightly. "With a new story but not with a new chapter to an existing story?"

A blush colours Shadow's Mirror's cheeks. "I know… I'm a naughty girl. I haven't updated in ages. But that doesn't mean that I haven't been writing!" She sighs. "It's just that the stuff I've been working on was either for something else or related to one of a jumble of ideas that have decided to ambush me over the past few weeks."

"New ideas? That means new stories. But I thought you were planning on working on your ongoing stories at the moment, rather than starting anything new?" The Dark Magician looks confused.

"Yes… well… that's what I thought I was doing too." Shadow's Mirror rolls her eyes. "Unfortunately, I don't control when ideas come to me or how insistent they are! I just write the stuff that flashes into my mind at all hours of the day or night. Usually night. It's odd how inspiration always seems to hit me between one and three in the morning."

The Dark Magician nods. "I get that way with new spells sometimes. So what…" He blinks as she suddenly vanishes. "Oh dear…"

D Human's laughter can be heard coming from off-camera. He's still laughing when Shadow's Mirror reappears in a flash of light. She blinks. "Did something funny happen?" D Human is laughing too hard to reply, so she raises an eyebrow in the Dark Magician's direction. He shakes his head.

"Just D Human's idea of… Oh honestly…" The Dark Magician glares off-camera at the source of the loud laughter, then waves his hand. There is sudden silence as all sound outside the area of the two chairs is magically blocked out. "As I was saying, it's just D Human's idea of humour."

"Ah. That explains it." Shadow's Mirror grins. "Nifty spell by the way."

The Dark Magician looks pleased. "Why thank you! It's one of my favourites. I use it when I'm working and don't wish to be disturbed." He smiles smugly. "It also stops teleportation spells."

Shadow's Mirror bursts out laughing. "Curses! Foiled again!" She winks and settles back in her chair. "All right. You have my complete and undivided attention!" The Dark Magician laughs.

"We were discussing story ideas and how you have been inundated with them lately. Are there any you can tell us about? Anything interesting?"

"Depends on your definition of 'interesting'," Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "I have one new Yu-Gi-Oh! story ready to go. It's called 'Who Would Believe Me' and I have absolutely no idea where it fits in with my other stories. It all came about because my friend Vash and I were monkeying around online one night. A couple of days later, Vash delighted me with the beginnings of her fanfic. I couldn't resist responding with one of my own. The end result was a short Joey and Seto one-shot."

The Dark Magician blinks and stares at Shadow's Mirror. "Did you just say…?"

"Get your mind out of the gutter. It's not that kind of fic." Shadow's Mirror smirks as the Dark Magician blushes. "Although some readers may think it is," she adds with a shrug.

"So I take it that it's written in a similar style to your 'Conversations' story? With suggestive language and the true situation not being revealed until the end?" Shadow's Mirror grins and nods and the Dark Magician smiles, obviously pleased that he guessed correctly. "You said it's ready to go?"

"Yes. I'll be posting it the same time this interview goes to air, along with three other new stories and a new chapter for my Angel fic." Shadow's Mirror smirks at the Dark Magician's obvious shock.

"Did you say three new stories? My. You were not joking about being 'ambushed' by ideas. I take it that they are not Yu-Gi-Oh! stories?" He looks disappointed.

Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "No, I wasn't joking and no, they're Inu-Yasha fics. Three short one-shots about Kagura and a character that some fans of Inu-Yasha might not even know about yet."

The Dark Magician blinks. "Meaning?"

"Meaning that he doesn't appear on the scene until episode 141 of the anime and book 30 of the manga. So anyone who doesn't know what happens that far into the series is going to have no idea who he is."

"That could be a problem," the Dark Magician agrees with a thoughtful frown.

Shadow's Mirror sighs and nods, her movements barely noticeable beneath the black hood that leaves only her face in clear sight. "Yes. I'm hoping that it won't have much impact on the readers' enjoyment of the stories. Hopefully, having the same character in all three fics will make him more familiar."

The Dark Magician nods. "True. Why three at once? You said they were one-shots, but from what you're saying it sounds as though there is a connection between them."

"Yes, there is." Shadow's Mirror grins. "You know me, I can't just write three unconnected stories at the same time. There has to be a link, or at least a common thread. In this case it's the theme. All three are about two specific characters and their interaction with each other. I've written them as a trilogy, but they can also be read as separate stories. Really though, if you like one of them, then you'll probably like the other two as well, because they're all similar in style and theme."

"I see." The Dark Magician ponders that for a moment before going on to his next question. "So are those all of the new stories that you were speaking about earlier?"

"Not quite. I do have one more that I'm working on. It's ongoing though and I'm still debating with myself over whether or not now is a good time to post it. I did want to try to focus on my current ongoing stories, and adding a new one to the list wasn't part of my plan. Also, I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with it. I think I need to think about it some more."

The Dark Magician nods, the slightest of frowns on his face. "As you said earlier, it has been some time since you last updated. Does that mean that these new stories have drawn your attention away from your ongoing ones?"

"Yes and no." Shadow's Mirror takes a moment to consider her reply. "Every story is different when it comes to how long it takes to simmer, but they all have one thing in common. It takes ideas and inspiration to keep them simmering. Lately, I haven't had much of either. So when I get an idea for a new story, it's not necessarily a bad thing. Sure, it means that I'm distracted from my ongoing stories while I work on it, but by the time I've finished…" Shadow's Mirror smiles. "My mind ends up buzzing with thoughts and images and my ongoing stories draw on them to simmer more strongly than before."

The Dark Magician nods thoughtfully. "So, in a way, the new stories become inspiration for your ongoing stories?"

Shadow's Mirror nods, smiling slightly. "It sounds strange, I know, but I think it has a lot to do with the way I write. When I open a story file to work on it, I'll always begin by reading over what I already have. It gets my mind in sync with the story, so I can pick up where I left off more easily. It also means that whatever mood I'm in while I'm writing doesn't influence the story as much as it would otherwise. I've written some of my funniest lines when I've been feeling like my world's collapsing around me and I've written lines that have made people cry when I've been feeling bouncy and mischievous."

"So, does that mean that you can write anything at any time, or are there some things that you do need to be in a particular mood to write?" The Dark Magician leans forward in interest.

"Last chapters." Shadow's Mirror's response is immediate. "It depends on the story, but if it's one that I've spent a lot of time working on, or if it's one that I'm particularly fond of, then the last chapter will often take me a long time to start. I put a lot of pressure on myself when it comes to tying up stories. I like to make the last chapters as good as I possibly can, and I often use them to tie up any loose ends from the rest of the story. Because of that though, it does take me a while sometimes to sort out what I have to cover."

The Dark Magician thinks for a moment. "Is that one of the reasons for the current update delays?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "Yes. At the moment I'm up to the final chapters in two of my ongoing Inu-Yasha fics. They're both proving to be very difficult for me to write, but I don't think they'll take much longer. I'm also coming close to the end of my Angel fic, but I started the fic knowing how it would end so I shouldn't have any trouble there. It's been a strange one right from the start."

When she stops there, the Dark Magician raises an eyebrow. "And what of 'Another Source of Magic'? It is getting fairly close to ending also, is it not?"

"Yes. There's only a few more chapters to go in that one," Shadow's Mirror quietly admits. She sighs before adding, "I'm currently going through the chapters where Bakura was a chibi, making notes of any loose ends that I wanted to tie up. So far, I have eighteen pages… and that's just the loose ends!" She chuckles softly. "Even without that, the chapter is particularly hard to write. I'm trying to find a balance between humour and angst and believe me, that is not easy!"

The Dark Magician smiles and nods. "No, I am very glad that I am not attempting it!" He waits for Shadow's Mirror's laughter to subside before continuing with his next question. "You mentioned earlier that you have finished a chapter of one of your ongoing fics?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles and nods. "Yes, chapter six of 'A Promise of Tomorrow'. Considering where I left off, I'll probably find out whether or not anyone's reading it by the number of 'you're evil!' reviews that I receive for it. I don't often do cliffhangers, so when I do I like to make them count." She smirks, her eyes gleaming with wicked amusement.

"I see. What of your other ongoing stories? Is there anything you can tell us about them?" The Dark Magician leans forward. "You are still continuing all of them, I hope?"

"Oh yes! Definitely!" Shadow's Mirror doesn't even need to think about it, but then she hesitates. When she next speaks, her voice is very quiet and very sad.

"The truth is, although I dearly love Yu-Gi-Oh! and all of its characters, it is very difficult for me to write in that fandom at the moment. About a month or so ago, I learned the final fate of the characters, according to the Japanese manga. That knowledge completely devastated me. Not just because it was so unexpected, but because of the effect that the ending will have on my stories. If the anime follows the same storyline as the manga, and it probably will, then it will mean that all of my stories are AU."

The Dark Magician frowns in confusion. "AU? Forgive me but… what does that mean?"

"It stands for Alternate Universe. You see, there are two types of fanfiction. Some writers follow the facts as they are in that particular fandom. They never, or barely, deviate from the 'canon', the things that happened in the series, movie, book or game that the fandom is based on. So those stories could actually happen in the world of that particular fandom. But sometimes writers aren't happy with what happens in the canon. Perhaps a favourite character dies or perhaps an episode doesn't end the way someone thinks that it should have. That's when Alternate Universes come into play."

The Dark Magician nods slowly. "I believe I understand. By changing one detail, an entirely new version of that world is born."

Shadow's Mirror nods. "That's right. If the fandom is for something that has a definite end, like the series Angel, then the line between canon and 'fanon', facts made up by fans that were never mentioned in the canon, is clear. But when you're writing in a fandom that is ongoing, like Yu-Gi-Oh! and Inu-Yasha, it becomes much more difficult. You have to be careful. There's no way of knowing when something might happen in the series that would make your story impossible."

A thoughtful look crosses the Dark Magician's face. "I see what you mean. Is that what happens with your stories because of the way Yu-Gi-Oh! ends?"

Sorrow dims Shadow's Mirror's eyes. "Yes."

"But surely this isn't the first time you've encountered this problem? Yet, I sense that this time there is something… more?" The Dark Magician's voice is very gentle.

A silent nod is his only response for a moment. "I prefer to keep to the canon wherever possible, but I do make exceptions. I write the characters the way I see them, and it isn't always as close to the canon as it could, or should, be. But I never go so far as to make it AU. Sometimes, I've had to rewrite things or find ways to work around things. But… this goes beyond all that. Everything that I've written, every story that I've worked so hard on…" she trails off, her head bowing until the black fabric of her hood falls forward, completely hiding her expression from sight.

The Dark Magician bows his head also. Then he looks up. "Surely something can be done to make it so that your stories are not affected in such a way?"

Shadow's Mirror's head slowly rises and the Dark Magician gasps when he sees her expression. Rather than crying, she is smiling slightly. "I'm working on it."

Oddly shaken by the gleam in her eyes, the Dark Magician turns to the camera. "Well, that ends the show for now. Thank you for viewing! Shadow's Mirror," he turns to her, "Thank you for coming."

Shadow's Mirror grins and nods. "You're welcome." She turns to the camera and waves. "Bye everyone!" Then, despite the fact that the teleportation-blocking spell is still in place, she vanishes.

Now thoroughly stunned, the Dark Magician removes the spell. The sounds that had been blocked out return and he blinks for a moment as he adjusts to the sudden lack of silence. While he's doing that, D Human peers out from behind the camera. "You know, she scares me sometimes."

The Dark Magician glances at him and smiles wryly. "Only sometimes?"

.

Cut, that's a wrap!


	6. The Sixth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The doodle mentioned in the story is, unfortunately, real. It's over at my gallery at Deviant Art, if anyone's interested. The link is on my bio page.

****

Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 6: The Sixth Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

**__**

Show aired September 12, 2004

Fire Sorcerer opens the kitchen door and smiles slightly when he sees who is standing there. "Hello Dark Magician. Please come in. He is most eager to see you."

"Thank you." The Dark Magician studies the boy as he enters the cosy room, although he is very careful not to make his concern obvious. The young Shadow Monster is looking very pale and tired, despite trying his best not to show it. But the truly worrying thing is how thin he is. His normally healthy glow is gone, replaced by almost translucent skin and dark shadows beneath his eyes.

"Dark Magician! Thank the Shadows you're here! You must help. Oh please, you must! We can't take it any longer!" A flurry of feathers and material comes through the other door and grabs hold of the startled magician's arm. Before the Dark Magician can say a word, he finds himself being pulled out of the kitchen and down a long, wide hallway by a figure in a purple robe with the head and wings of a bird. Fire Sorcerer was obviously not exaggerating about the Spirit of the Books' emotional state.

"I can see why you called me. Fire Sorcerer definitely doesn't look well. Do we really need to run though?" The Dark Magician gives a pained grunt as his companion suddenly stops in his tracks, causing the mage to slam into him. "Ow."

Puzzled dark eyes peer up at the Dark Magician. "Fire Sorcerer? Oh no. Nonononono! He's not the reason I called you here!" The mage barely has time to blink in surprise before he is pulled the rest of the way down the hall. When they reach the doorway, the Spirit of the Books gives one final tug so the Dark Magician can see through the doorway. "No. She's the reason why I called you!" He gestures with a trembling hand into the room beyond. The Dark Magician looks. Then he blinks.

The Royal Magical Library is a massive room that rises up in a column of more levels than anyone has ever been able to count. The shelves covering every wall are filled with books on every subject imaginable, and quite a few more besides. Large platforms jut out from the shelf-clad walls, one on every level. Each platform supports a small podium just large enough to hold a large book, a quill and a pot of ink if necessary. Underneath the platforms are the large balls of green energy, mage orbs, which provide the room's only illumination. Purple-robed figures move around the room, constantly cataloguing, reshelving, dusting and doing whatever else needs to be done at the time, as much a part of the library as the books and shelves.

Normally, the library is a peaceful place and the librarians go about their tasks with an unhurried calmness that enhances the feeling of peace even more. So it is quite a shock for the Dark Magician to see the librarians all rushing frantically around the place trying to reshelve the stacks of books in their arms that threaten to topple to the floor every time they move.

In the middle of the room, seated at the massive table there, is the cause of the chaos.

The Dark Magician strides into the room, causing more than one librarian to mutter 'thank the Shadows' under their breath. As he approaches the hooded figure, he notices how still she is. Her eyes are closed and she looks completely relaxed. Then he glances at the table in front of her and tries not to grin. Several pens lie abandoned beside a pad of paper that has a few lines on it, all of them scratched out. Apparently the frustrated writer took to doodling after that because the rest of the page contains a rather odd drawing of what appears to be a cat with a mouse and a small… something or other… sitting on its back. The Dark Magician eyes the picture for a minute.

"If you don't mind my asking, what is that drawing supposed to be?"

"It's a cat with a mouse and a riceball on its back. Can't you tell?"

"The cat and the mouse I recognised, yes. It was the smiling triangle with stick arms and legs that gave me the trouble." The Dark Magician smiles as the hooded girl opens one eye and glances at him.

"Do you mind? That's my artwork you're talking about. I happen to be rather fond of that riceball. Now go away and let me think in peace." Shadow's Mirror closes her eye again.

"Thinking? Is that what you were doing? Strange… It looked as though you were asleep." The Dark Magician perches on the side of the table beside her.

"Well I do get my best ideas that way, but how could I possibly sleep with all this noise and bustle?" One hand waves lazily through the air, vaguely gesturing at the frazzled librarians.

"Ah. Yes. What have you been doing here to get them so worked up?"

"Me? I just came here to do a spot of research. I have no idea what's set them off."

"Research?" The Dark Magician picks up one of the books piled on the table nearby and glances at the title. He raises an eyebrow. "'Original Characters of Feudal Japan and How to Remember Their Names'. Sounds fascinating." He picks up another book. "'Legends of Ancient Greece'. Greece?" He blinks and stares at the girl in surprise. "Not Egypt?"

"I needed some information for the last chapter and epilogue of my Angel fic."

The Dark Magician perks up at that. "Last chapter and epilogue? Oh, that's excellent news! You're working on them now?"

"No. I've finished them. I think." A slight frown and a heavy sigh makes the Dark Magician study her for a moment in surprise.

"You think? You don't know if you've finished them or not?"

"Well I've written them. Then I edited, proofread, spellchecked and proofread them again, like I do with all of my stories. But I'm not happy with them."

"Ah! I see. What's the problem?" As he waits for her response, the Dark Magician peers at the title on another book and blinks before quickly putting 'Philosophical Ramblings of Balance and Fate' (by D. Estiny) back on the table.

"You mean aside from the fact that the epilogue made me cry while I was writing it? I haven't the foggiest. I suspect it might just be the fact that I started the fic with a definite ending in mind, but ended up changing it as I was writing. That sort of thing always makes me doubt myself."

"You? Doubt yourself?" The Dark Magician stares at Shadow's Mirror in surprise.

"Uh huh. Always. I love writing. I've loved it ever since I wrote my first story. I was six years old. But I'm well aware of my limitations. I respect the characters and their original creator, I proofread and spellcheck my work and I can turn a pretty phrase when I have to, but I'm not perfect. I often ramble, I go off on tangents that have been known to completely eclipse what was supposed to be the main storyline and I have an extensive vocabulary that occasionally makes me sound as though I've eaten a dictionary. I am constantly learning and I am constantly judging my own work. I never allow anything to be seen by anyone else unless I am happy with it. But there is one thing in which I am never good enough, in my own eyes."

The Dark Magician's expression becomes very gentle. "What is that?"

Shadow's Mirror sighs. "I can't always evoke emotion in the readers. A truly good writer is someone who has the ability to make a reader feel a character's thoughts or emotions. They draw them into the story and they make them care about the characters and what happens to them. The characters become their friends or enemies. The story will be painted in the reader's mind and when it is over… the reader will blink and come out of their daze with the knowledge that they have just read something truly incredible." The Dark Magician blinks at the wistful note in Shadow's Mirror's voice.

"You've read stories like that?"

"Yes. Oh yes. And after I read them, I think back over what I've written and I know that my writing is not that good." Shadow's Mirror's smile is tinged with sorrow.

"Oh… but surely…" Before the Dark Magician can say anything more, Shadow's Mirror opens her eyes and turns her head. He falls silent at the knowing look she gives him.

"I make no claim towards being a good or bad writer. I leave that decision up to those who read my stories. I believe that sometimes my stories will make people laugh, or at least snicker silently to themselves. But I also believe that laughter is one of the easiest emotions to draw out. For me, the true challenge lies with the darker emotions. To make a reader feel the pain and sorrow of a character… for a reader to actually cry over my words… I don't know if my writing holds such power."

After several moments of silence, Shadow's Mirror sighs heavily and looks away. When she speaks again, her voice is very soft. "That's why most of my stories focus on the lighter side of things. I'm more comfortable writing humour, action and light drama than I am with writing pain and angst."

The Dark Magician blinks. "Um… don't you have rather a lot of pain in one of your Inu-Yasha stories and in your Angel story?" He blushes and shifts uncomfortably as Shadow's Mirror's startled gaze snaps to him.

"You've read my…?"

"Yes… well… You haven't written any Yu-Gi-Oh! stories in some time and I got a little… bored one night a few weeks ago, so…" He shifts again, refusing to look at her. Shadow's Mirror chuckles.

"Ah! I see! Well… yes… both of those stories have battles and injuries in them, but that's not the sort of pain I meant. I meant emotional pain, not pain from having someone stab you with a sword or shoot poisonous vapours at you. I mean the kind of pain that comes from having someone betray your trust, or lie to you, or yell things that leave you lying broken on the ground, sobbing for hours afterwards."

The Dark Magician blinks and eyes Shadow's Mirror thoughtfully. "You don't normally write that sort of story, but you do put a little angst in every now and then."

Shadow's Mirror nods. "If that's what happens in the story, then yes. I write what comes to me. I'll get a flash in my mind… an image of a scene, or sometimes it will be a phrase, or a sentence. I've even had whole paragraphs just pop into my mind occasionally. If it's a new story, then that's usually all I'll get. I put the story on simmer mode and sooner or later the rest of it will come to me. If it's for a story that's already simmering though, that's different. Usually I'll end up writing at least one chapter. But while I'm writing… I'm normally rather detached from the emotional side of the story. I can write the funniest things and the saddest things without missing a keystroke. It isn't until I read over what I've written that the emotions will hit me. It's very rare for me to feel the emotion as I write it. When I do…" She trails off with a slight shudder.

"So… does that mean that your personal mood doesn't affect your writing at all?" The Dark Magician frowns slightly. "I mean… if you write as the stories come to you, then what happens if a happy story comes when you're feeling down?"

"It will be a happy story. When I first started writing, my emotions did lead the stories sometimes. Over the years though, I've come to realise that every story has its own mood. If you can tap into that mood, then you can keep the story true to itself no matter what your own mood might be at the time. Although… there are exceptions. There are some stories that can only be written when you're in the right mood." Shadow's Mirror sighs softly, looking down at her writing pad.

The Dark Magician starts to speak, but pauses as he feels something strange in the air. It feels like Shadow Magic, but it isn't being directed by a Shadow Monster, or one of the Millennium Items. This is… something different. He frowns, trying to sense the source of the powerful magic. It seems to be coming from… Shadow's Mirror!

All around the library, the mage lights begin to either dim or spark and books start tumbling off the shelves. The librarians groan and rush around, trying to catch the falling books and return them to their proper places. As the magician looks around in surprise, he begins to realise why the Spirit of the Books had been so upset earlier. Chaos has come to the Royal Library, caused by the power that Shadow's Mirror seems to be calling without even realising it! Such power… it could only be called so strongly if there is intense emotion behind it.

"Shadow's Mirror?" He speaks tentatively, trying to catch her attention. She doesn't seem upset, just a little distracted and somewhat quieter than usual. Thinking back over their discussion though, the Dark Magician suddenly realises something she hasn't mentioned. Normally, it would have been one of the first things she had spoken about, so perhaps it is the cause of the trouble. "It has been some time since you last wrote anything. Why is that, if you don't mind me asking?" he asks quietly.

The books stop falling and the lights return to normal as Shadow's Mirror blinks and comes out of her reverie. "What? Oh!" A tinge of colour appears on her pale cheeks, although it is hard to tell since her hood throws her face into shadow. "Yes, it has been a while. I got so caught up in everything else I've been doing, I didn't realise how much time had passed until it was mentioned in a review the other day. It's actually rather embarrassing." She ducks her head down as her blush deepens.

The Dark Magician smiles slightly, relieved that she seems to have regained control of her emotions. "So, is that why you haven't been writing? Lack of time?"

Shadow's Mirror sighs softly as she shakes her head. "Not exactly. I haven't been any busier than usual so I've had plenty of time to write. No, the problem is more a lack of inspiration."

"Writer's Block?" The Dark Magician blinks in surprise. "You don't often suffer from that, do you?"

"Not exactly. Some stories need to simmer for longer than others, but sooner or later they're all ready to be written. But the simmering is just my mind going over the story and working out how to phrase things and what's going to happen and stuff like that. It's what goes into the story while it's simmering that makes it good or bad. Any idea or flash of inspiration could be the last bit of spice the story needs. But if there's no inspiration, then…" Shadow's Mirror shrugs and sighs again.

"I see. That is indeed a problem." The Dark Magician thinks for a moment. "What normally inspires you?" he finally asks. The question earns him a slight smile.

"Pretty much anything, usually. Lately though… the only things I've been getting inspiration from have nothing to do with any of the stories that I'm writing!"

The Dark Magician eyes the writing pad with its odd little doodle. "Like cats, mice and… riceballs?"

Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "My current obsession. I get this way every time I discover a new manga or anime that I really like. Don't worry, it's only temporary. A few more weeks and it should return to a less distracting level of fascination." Her smile fades and she sighs again. "But in the meantime, it's hard for me to focus on other things. Also…" She hesitates.

"Also?" the Dark Magician prompts after a moment of silence. The mood seems to have shifted… darkened. Whatever is on Shadow's Mirror's mind, it is apparently quite serious.

"Over the past few months, there have been a few things that have forced me to step back and reconsider where I'm going with some of my stories. Since I find it very difficult to write when I know there's a problem in something, some fics will be going very slowly until I sort out some answers."

The Dark Magician frowns slightly. "That sounds ominous. Which stories are you questioning?"

"I have some major timeline problems with my Yu-Gi-Oh! fics. The biggest one being the question of exactly when they all take place. I have 'Source' starting about six months after the end of Battle City, but I wrote that before I found out any details about the episodes after that point in the anime. I've found out since that it doesn't fit in the timeline. It's looking more and more likely that I'm going to have to set all of my Yu-Gi-Oh! stories in an Alternate Universe. Which is annoying, but workable." Shadow's Mirror sighs. "But then there's my Inu-Yasha crossover."

The Dark Magician winces as he feels the magic stirring around the Library again. He quickly goes into 'distract the emotional Authoress before she causes more chaos' mode. "That was the last ongoing one you started, wasn't it? The crossover with the fandom I've never heard of before."

"Nights into Dreams. Yes."

When Shadow's Mirror doesn't add anything else, the Dark Magician takes a deep breath and plunges headlong into the conversation. "You don't like the way it's going?" He frowns slightly, remembering something. "But you only have the prologue and the first chapter written. How can you tell where it's headed just from that?" He blinks at Shadow's Mirror in bewilderment.

She shakes her head. "No, it's not that. It's not a bad idea. I've never been particularly interested in Nights into Dreams though. I only wrote it as an experiment really, just to see if I could write such an odd crossover. What little interest and excitement I initially had in it has long since vanished. I have so much else to do and so many other stories to write, I really can't see myself wasting time on it." She sighs. "I hate that feeling more than anything else. I've never thought of writing any story as being a 'waste of time' before. Also, I hate to just give up on it. I've never done that before either."

The Dark Magician thinks for a long moment. "Perhaps… Don't you sometimes have periods where you don't have anything else to write? Couldn't it… keep you busy during those times until something else comes up?"

Shadow's Mirror blinks and looks very thoughtful. "Hmm… You know… You just might have an idea there." Her smile lights up her face as she beams up at the mage. "Dark Magician, you're a genius!"

"I'm glad that I could be of assistance." The Dark Magician smiles at Shadow's Mirror, then his smile fades as something occurs to him. "Your lack of inspiration and distraction over the story problems… They have been a concern for you for some time now, correct?"

"You're wondering how long it will continue for, and what effect it will have on my updating my fics, right?" Shadow's Mirror chuckles softly as the Dark Magician's blush confirms her guess. "Well, that's hard to say. I'm playing 'catch-up' with a few things at the moment, which always wreaks havoc with my writing. I simply can't concentrate on stories when I'm rushing around with other things. But I'm starting to see some results now, and in the past few days I even received an unexpected flash of inspiration, so it shouldn't be much longer. I feel awfully guilty though. I hate knowing that I'm letting people down and I can only thank the people who have been waiting so patiently for me."

The Dark Magician nods. "I suppose the important thing is the knowledge that you're continuing all of your stories." He pauses and suddenly looks worried. "Um… you are, aren't you?"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Yes. Definitely! I haven't forgotten about any of them!"

After sighing in relief, the Dark Magician smiles happily. "So… Where are you up to with them all?"

Shadow's Mirror thinks for a moment. "Well I have a one-shot Ryou/Bakura story ready to go. It's the result of that single flash of inspiration that I just mentioned. It's also so sweet and sugary that it will probably cause cavities. Apart from that, all of my five ongoing Yu-Gi-Oh! fics are up to very difficult chapters." She grimaces. "To be honest, even if I'd had a teakettle of inspiration to pour into those simmering stories every hour, I'd probably still be at exactly the same point with all of them that I'm at now!" She shakes her head. "The timeline problem is a huge distraction. I'm thinking I need to get it sorted out once and for all before I do anything else."

The Dark Magician nods. "That sounds like a wise decision. What of your other stories? You mentioned the crossover earlier, so I'm assuming that it is currently on hiatus?"

"At the moment, yes. I'll have to wait and see what happens with that one. My other two Inu-Yasha stories are both up to their final chapters. Still. I know I always have trouble with the final chapters of stories, but this is getting ridiculous. I missed the moment when they came off simmer so I've had to reheat them. I'll give them a stir as soon as I feel in the mood for a spot of frustration." Shadow's Mirror smiles wryly.

"Which leaves your Angel story. I believe you mentioned it earlier, although… Didn't you say that it was completed?" The Dark Magician frowns slightly. "For someone who's been unable to write lately, you seem to have written quite a bit." He eyes Shadow's Mirror in confusion. She chuckles.

"With the rest of my ongoing stories, it's been nothing but me staring for hours at a blank screen. But my Angel fic was always different to the others. It began differently, every chapter was different… I really should have known that the ending would turn out to be different too." She bows her head, a sweetly sad smile flickering over her lips.

The Dark Magician eyes her warily, relaxing when he realises that the Shadow Magic isn't stirring in response to this particular mood. "What made it so different?"

"Most of my stories begin as a flash in my mind. An image or a phrase, usually. But that one began as a single thought that came the moment I finished reading a detailed review of the final episode of Angel, which wouldn't be played where I was for several more months. I was in tears by the time I finished reading it. My only thought was that having it all end with them going in to that final battle, with no knowledge of whether or not they survived… It seemed so right… so fitting… but at the same time, it just seemed to me that they deserved some… hope."

"So you wrote a new ending to the story? No… that's not right, is it? Your story isn't a new ending. It takes up where the final episode leaves off, doesn't it?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "I believe that a creator's decision about a character or a scene should always be respected and accepted, whether or not that decision is one that I personally agree with. I will never rewrite a scene from the canon so the outcome is changed. For example, if a character that I love dies, I won't write any story that is merely a rewrite of that death scene so it never happened, or so the character lives. But if something touches me deeply enough… Sometimes I feel compelled to do something." She paused for a moment, considering her words before continuing.

"The moments of a world that are shown in a series are not something to be tampered with, in my eyes. It is the world beyond those moments, the parts of the story that are never shown, never told… That is the world in which we fanfiction writers walk. We write of the missing years between the sagas of Dragonball Z. We write of the day to day life of characters when they're not fighting demons, or each other, for control of the world, or for the souls and lives of their friends. We fill in the gaps in the canon. We explain what is never explained. We answer questions that are never answered. Like… what is Sesshoumaru's fluffy thing? No one knows except the creator. But to a fanfiction writer, it becomes a tail, an enemy's pelt, even armpit hair! Anything is possible. But… canon is canon and fanon is always fanon. The two may mingle, but one should never be mistaken for the other."

The Dark Magician stares at Shadow's Mirror, surprised at how serious she is. He can only nod silently as she continues to speak, her voice softer now but no less assured. "Angel is complete. There is no canon except what was in the series. The canon ended with the final episode, but the fanon continues. It will continue as long as there are writers writing in that fandom. I wanted to contribute something to show my respect to the show, its creator and those who worked on it." Shadow's Mirror smiles slightly.

"That was how it began. But after that, each chapter came so easily it was as though there was someone sitting at my side, whispering the words into my ear as I typed them. I've never felt that way about any story before. It was strange… but not unwelcome. I knew how the story would end the moment I began writing the first chapter. But when it came to writing the final chapter… the whisper came and I obeyed, even though the words I was typing didn't match the scene I'd had in my mind for the duration of the story. By the third page I knew that it wasn't the last chapter. I wrote the last word and immediately began the epilogue. There was no break between the two. I didn't need one. I wrote the epilogue in under an hour. I typed the last word… and only then realised that I was crying."

"Shadow's Mirror…" The Dark Magician rests one hand lightly on the girl's shoulder and she smiles up at him.

"I'm okay. It's been a few weeks since I wrote it. I wanted to wait a while before I proofread it, so I had a better chance of picking up any errors. I also wanted my friend Vash to read it and see what she thought. I wasn't sure if the identity of the hooded woman was too obvious or not. I'll be posting the Epilogue the day after the last chapter. I'd rather post them together, but I don't want to risk people not realising and missing the final chapter by accident. I've done that myself too many times to count!"

The Dark Magician nods. "It sounds as though what you have written is very emotional."

Shadow's Mirror's smile becomes slightly sad. "What I said before, about how I wasn't sure if I could evoke emotion with my words… It seems that the time has come to test that. It's not just my Angel fic either. I've written two other stories as well. Both Inu-Yasha one-shots. I wrote them two weeks apart, during the nights after I learned of the events they deal with. Ever since, I've been debating with myself over whether or not to share them. They were written after I read translated chapters of the Inu-Yasha manga, so they contain spoilers and they won't make the slightest bit of sense to anyone who hasn't also read either the translations or the manga itself. But…" Shadow's Mirror sighs softly. "They're like the Angel story in a way. All were written for the same reason and all are intended as a tribute to the characters that they're written about." She sighs again. "And all three made me cry while I was writing them. That's so rare… I can't **not**share them. I only hope that the readers will forgive me for indulging myself by making an original character so prominent in both stories… and never revealing his name."

The Dark Magician blinks at Shadow's Mirror in surprise. "He has no name?"

"Oh, no, he has one. It's just that I want him to remain a bit of a mystery until a future story. Also… I sort of… keep forgetting what his name is." Shadow's Mirror blushes and grins sheepishly.

The Dark Magician bursts out laughing, causing most of the librarians to turn and frown at him disapprovingly. Seeing the looks they're giving him, he grins and stands. "I fear the librarians would very much like to tell me to shush right now. Perhaps we could continue this conversation elsewhere? Say… back in my library in front of the camera? It has been some time since our last interview, after all." He looks hopefully at her and she laughs as she stands up.

"All right Dark Magician, you talked me into it! I've done quite enough work for one day."

She gathers her things and stows them away inside her cloak with surprising ease. As they make their way towards the exit though, Shadow's Mirror suddenly pauses. "Oh, I almost forgot!" Whirling around, she looks at the librarians as they scurry around, then turns her attention to the books lying scattered all around the room. Concentrating, she waves one hand. All of the books suddenly fly off the floor and table and onto the shelves. She repeats the motion and the rest of the books fly from the startled librarians' arms to settle in their proper places.

As the librarians blink at her in shock, Shadow's Mirror moves to the Dark Magician's side. As he holds the door open for her, looking mildly surprised and very intrigued by her sudden display of magic, she smiles sweetly up at him. "I really didn't mean to cause so much trouble. I'm afraid that my darker half loses control of our power whenever I get overly tense or emotional." As she steps outside into the sunshine, the Dark Magician's eyes go wide in shock.

"Did you just say… darker half? You mean you have a…" Realising that Shadow's Mirror is already walking away, the Dark Magician hurries after her. "Shadow's Mirror! Wait for me!"

Their voices fade and the library is once again a place of peace.

To be continued…


	7. The Seventh Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 1: Text in **bold** is being emphasised.

****

Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 7: The Seventh Show  
By Shadow's Mirror

**_Show aired December 2, 2004_**

The Dark Magician is in his library, sitting quietly in his comfortable chair in front of a merrily crackling fire. There are no cameras in the room, for it isn't a scheduled interview day. In fact, with Shadow's Mirror's busy schedule and the uncertain state of the Shadow Realm, all interviews have been postponed for at least a month. So the Dark Magician is merely enjoying a rare moment of solitude and silence as he reads a book.

Then the door slams open and the whirlwind that is his apprentice bursts in with a tea tray, babbling at the top of her voice in a most undignified, but thoroughly her, way. "Here he is! Just come in and sit down, make yourselves right at home! Oh, I'll just magic up…" She pauses suddenly, biting her lip as she remembers. With the Shadow Magic so wild, any use of it is more difficult and draining on the strength of the spellcaster.

"That's all right. Allow me."

If the familiar voice hadn't caused the Dark Magician to peer around the side of his chair in surprise, the two armchairs appearing beside his, one on either side, would have. "Shadow's Mirror? What an unexpected pleasure! What brings you here in such nasty weather?" He smiles at her in delight.

"I'm hiding." Shadow's Mirror smirks, her grin fading slightly as she gets a good look at him. The mage looks paler and frailer than usual, dark circles under his eyes revealing the fact that he hasn't been getting much sleep. He looks ill and tired, which for him most likely means he's near exhaustion.

"Hiding? From what?" The Dark Magician ignores the questions he can see in Shadow's Mirror's eyes.

"More like 'from whom'. And the answer is… my lovely readers! I've been told by my best friend, beta reader, co-writer, fellow fangirl, Bakura-and-Yami lover and all-around treasure, otherwise known as Vash is my Angel, that I should hide from them. It's either that or duck."

The Dark Magician blinks, partly at the odd statement and partly at the Authoress's unusual hyper state. "Duck?"

"Yup!"

When no more information is forthcoming, the Dark Magician succumbs to the obvious cue. "Duck what?"

Shadow's Mirror drops into the chair on his left and holds her hands out to the fire, a smile of pure bliss spreading over her face at the welcome warmth. "Mmmm… toasty! It's cold out there! And purple. Is the snow always purple here?"

"No, yesterday it was orange with green stripes. Duck what?" The Dark Magician refuses to give up hope of getting a straight answer from her.

"Hey! There's no need to be sarcastic! I was just asking!" Shadow's Mirror frowns at him.

A soft voice speaks up from the doorway. "Actually, that was not sarcasm. Yesterday, the snow really was orange with green stripes. It was rather disturbing. Especially since it fell with every snowflake in precise alignment, so the lines were clearly visible."

The Dark Magician blinks and peers around his chair again, searching for the speaker. He blinks again when he spots him. "Chaos? What in the Shadows are you doing out of the fortress in this awful weather?" His already-pale face turns several shades lighter as he gasps. "Oh no…"

The Magician of Black Chaos shakes his head, smiling as he crosses the room to the spare chair. "Do not fear, my brother. The Elders are safely at home. They dare not leave the warmth and comfort of their sanctuary in such unpredictable weather. They have a tendency to fall into icy lakes and snowdrifts. Besides, with the magic so far beyond our control, journeying is very difficult for them." He sinks into the chair with a sigh and leans back. Closing his eyes, he suddenly looks very tired.

The Dark Magician eyes him with concern. "For you, also. Your bond with the Shadow Magic may not be as strong as some, but it is stronger than most." His comment earns him a small smile.

"True. In fact, the Elders have stopped sending me out on their little missions, because of it."

"That is good to hear. So why is it that you are here, then? Not that I am complaining. It is a rare pleasure to have you visit." The Dark Magician smiles warmly at the other Shadow Monster. The Magician of Black Chaos opens his eyes and smiles back.

"You mean it is a pleasure for me to visit **alone**. As I recall, you were not so happy to see me the last time I came to call." The Chaos mage's dark eyes gleam with amusement as the younger mage winces.

"Yes… well… it was a rather nasty shock to wake up and find you and both Elders standing in my bed chamber!" He frowns as the other mage chuckles softly. "Oh yes, you can laugh. You were not the one who got lectured for over an hour on appropriate sleepwear!" Turning away, the Dark Magician pouts into the fire.

"Oh, do not worry, you are hardly the first to incur their wrath over such a thing. Considering that their idea of 'appropriate sleepwear' is either long underwear or a nightgown and cap, there are few Shadow Monsters who have not received that particular lecture. Although… for the record, they gave you the short version. I think you impressed them."

The Dark Magician blinks. "Impressed them?" He looks more than a little horrified at the idea.

"Yes. As the Stern Mystic commented afterwards, 'it is few indeed who have the courage to listen to us speak to them on correct sleep apparel while remaining skyclad throughout.'"

Shadow's Mirror bursts out laughing, causing both males to blink in surprise as they suddenly recall her presence. The Dark Magician's cheeks flood with colour. "You… did not hear that."

"Oh, yes, I most assuredly did!" Shadow's Mirror grins. "And the mental image that came as a result of it is not one I'll soon be forgetting, either!"

Her words cause the Magician of Black Chaos to chuckle, earning him a reproving glance from the younger mage. "It is not funny." He turns his frown onto Shadow's Mirror. "Ducks what?"

"Are you still on about that? Oh, very well then." Shadow's Mirror rolls her eyes. "I'm ready to update two of my stories with new chapters."

The Dark Magician's eyes light up as he smiles. "Oh? That is excellent news! Which ones?" Then he frowns slightly. "And what has that to do with your needing to duck?"

"According to Vash, when I upload these particular chapters, I should either hide or prepare to duck, so I don't get hit by the various items being thrown at me."

The Dark Magician blinks at her. "Various items?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles wryly. "Fireballs, pitchforks and large rocks were mentioned."

He winces. "Ouch. Why would anyone wish to throw such things at you? Your writing is not that bad."

"Gee… thanks…" Shadow's Mirror glances at Chaos as he snickers. "Having fun there?"

"Oh yes. Very much so," the mage cheerfully informs her. She rolls her eyes and returns her attention to the other snickering mage.

"Do you want an answer to your question or not?"

The Dark Magician manages to stop laughing… more or less. "Please."

Shadow's Mirror sighs and rolls her eyes. "Mages… No, it's not because of the writing. It's because both of the chapters end in cliffhangers. Not 'evil cliffhanger of doom'… more 'if she doesn't update again soon, I may have to resort to threatening her with chibis' cliffhangers."

"That doesn't sound too bad," Chaos offers softly.

"It wouldn't be, except that one of the stories hasn't been updated for so long that I'm starting to get 'is this series continuing?' reviews." Shadow's Mirror winces as the two mages blink.

The Dark Magician leans forward, hope warring with caution in his eyes. "Which one is that? Oh, thank you!" He accepts the cup of tea the Dark Magician Girl hands to him and takes a sip.

Shadow's Mirror wriggles into a more comfortable position and smiles serenely. "I'm updating 'Library' and…" She pauses, waiting until he finishes sipping his tea. "…'Source'."

There is a moment of silence as the Dark Magician almost drops his cup of tea. He catches it and quickly places it on the floor beside him. Then, releasing a wild whoop of unrestrained joy, he starts bouncing in his chair. "You finished it! You finally finished it!" He beams at the now-laughing Authoress. "Congratulations! It certainly took you long enough!"

Shadow's Mirror wags her finger at him. "Don't you start. I'm feeling guilty enough over it! I actually had it finished a week or two ago. At least, I thought I did. I wasn't quite happy with it. Finally, I said to myself that I had to update it, happy or not, so I went to type in 'to be continued…' at the end. By the time I typed that, I'd also typed two extra pages and was happy with it!" She shakes her head, grinning. "I swear the stories do it to me deliberately sometimes… But anyway, it's done now and I'm very relieved about that. Now I just have to get working on the others." She winces at the thought.

The Dark Magician smiles at her. "You finished this chapter, you can do anything!"

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "I'll take that as a compliment! I just hope everyone likes it!"

"I'm sure they will. Does this chapter end the series?" The Dark Magician leans towards her, eager for her answer. Chaos manages to rescue the teacup before the younger mage kicks it.

"No. It was supposed to end this particular arc in the story though, but I changed my mind about that while writing it. So it looks like there's going to be at least one, possibly two, more chapters in 'Source' than I thought." Shadow's Mirror grins wryly. "And for some reason, I'm not surprised at that."

The Dark Magician nods. "You had a lot of trouble writing this chapter, didn't you?"

"Oh yeah!" Shadow's Mirror winces at the reminder. "I thought I knew what was going to happen in it, but when I checked back over the rest of that arc, I realised that I had a lot more to fit in than I'd thought. I tried to stick to the original plan, but it just wasn't working. Then, about a month or so ago, I decided to try a different approach. It worked. The story was much easier to write after that. Sometimes that's all it takes to break through a Writer's Block. If the story isn't coming in the way you want it to, it might not be lack of inspiration or inability to find the right words, it could just be that the way you want to write something isn't the way the story wants to be written."

"So, now that you have this chapter written, when will you update it again?" The Dark Magician smiles at her as Shadow's Mirror bursts out laughing.

"Hey! Give me a chance! That's not my only ongoing story, you know! I have a few others and some of them haven't been updated in just as long, if not longer, than 'Source'!"

"Ah, yes. It has been some time. Where are you up to with all of them and why are they taking so long?" The mage's eyes gleam with interest.

Shadow's Mirror thinks for a moment, mentally reviewing her story list. "They're taking a while because of where they're up to. All of them have angst, action or a lot of loose ends that need to be tied up. Some have all three. The more that's in a chapter, the longer it usually takes to simmer. My two Inu-Yasha fics are both up to their last chapters too. That brings a horde of problems by itself. With my other fics, the next chapter of 'Source' shouldn't take anywhere near as long as the last one. I actually know what happens in the next chapter!" She grins. "'Library' shouldn't be too far away either, although it will probably start to slow down since it's getting close to the end. I'm not sure how close though. I know there's at least three chapters to go."

The Dark Magician blinks. "It is that near to being complete?"

She nods. "Uh huh. It was originally intended to be much shorter, actually. I wasn't going to bring in the bit about the cards, or the state of the Shadow Realm, just the bit about Fire Sorcerer falling ill. But 'Library' is one of several stories that are linked together and there were a few pieces of information that I needed to work into one of those stories. They were supposed to go into the Christmas chapters in 'Source' last year, but I ended up cutting them. The timing wasn't right and they just didn't fit in. But they do fit into 'Library'."

"So both 'Library' and 'Source' are connected?" The Dark Magician appears fascinated. "You said 'several' are linked, which ones are they?"

Shadow's Mirror counts them off. "'Hearts, Souls & Shadows', 'The Shadow Tournament', 'Another Source of Magic', 'The Cinderella Spell', 'The Shadow Library', 'Interview with an Authoress', 'A Life for a Life' and two others. Possibly three… 'Life' might have a sequel."

"I have not heard of that one before, is it new?" The Dark Magician looks delighted at the possibility. Shadow's Mirror grins at his eagerness.

"Yes. It's a companion story for 'Library', but I have to wait until I get further into both it and another story before I can start posting it. You won't see it for a while." Shadow's Mirror smiles apologetically at the obviously disappointed mage.

"Oh well, at least you are updating 'Library' fairly quickly. It seems to be going well."

A big smile lights up Shadow's Mirror's face. "Oh yes! I got a bit stuck around one of the earliest chapters, but since then it's been good. I know what happens in the rest of it too, I just have to find the time to type the chapters up!"

"Excellent! What about the others? You have… how many is it ongoing now?"

"Eight. Two Inu-Yasha, five Yu-Gi-Oh! and an Inu-Yasha/Nights into Dreams crossover."

"You have mentioned four so far, what of the others?" The Dark Magician shifts in his chair, getting comfortable as he listens eagerly.

Shadow's Mirror thinks for a moment. "The crossover is on hiatus. Two of my Yu-Gi-Oh! fics might as well be, since neither of them shows the slightest inclination to simmer." She sighs. "There's not much I can do with them except add some water, stir them a bit and put them on to reheat. 'Interview' is going rather well though, despite the fact that most people don't seem to realise that it is an extremely important story."

Chaos stirs. "It is? Is that not the one where you talk about what you have been writing?"

"Yes, but it's much more than that. It's my only story set entirely in the Shadow Realm, so it contains a great deal of information that my other stories don't. Even if I do write something Shadow-Realm related into one of the others, chances are that it appeared in 'Interview' some time earlier. Although I will write most important facts into one of my more popular fics, like 'Library' or 'Source', by the time all of the linked stories are completed, there will be some information found only in 'Interview'."

The Dark Magician frowns slightly. "So all the linked stories need to be read together? Is that what you are saying?"

Shadow's Mirror considers for a moment. "Yes and no. You can read all of them individually, and you will get the complete picture for that story, but if you read more than one, you will notice things that link the two. For example, there's a character whose name pops up in 'Source' at one point and Ryou has a certain reaction to him. It has nothing to do with the storyline for 'Source', so it's never explained why he has that reaction… But fairly late in 'Tournament', it will turn out to be a rather important fact."

Both mages blink and lean forward. "You mean, you are working such things into your stories even though they will not have importance for some time to come?" Chaos stares at her in shock.

"That's right. If I don't explain something in one story, then chances are that it's either not important at all, or it's important in another story and that's where I'm explaining it." Shadow's Mirror smiles serenely at the two startled mages.

"How in the Shadows do you manage to keep track of everything?" the Dark Magician blurts out.

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "Oh, that's easy! I have all of the linked stories set in my mind. I know roughly what happens in each one, I just don't have it word-for-word in most cases. I have a brief summary of events for each story, enough that I know what happens and in what order. But I don't know the exact details for every part of every story. That's why some chapters take longer to write than others. They have to simmer more because I don't know them as well as I do other chapters."

"That's… remarkable." Chaos blinks at her, obviously still in shock.

The Dark Magician manages to shake himself out of his own daze. "So… with so many stories still ongoing, what are you planning to work on next? What can we expect the next update to be and when?" He gives Shadow's Mirror a very hopeful look. "Perhaps… my story?"

The Authoress laughs. "Soon, my friend. Very soon. The next update will be around Christmas time. I'm hoping to have something a bit special done by then. But it depends on how much writing time I have between now and then." Her eyes twinkle mischievously as she grins.

The Dark Magician grins back. "It sounds as though you are planning a little Christmas surprise for everyone who reads your stories."

"To quote a character from one of my favourite anime… 'That's a secret!'" Shadow's Mirror smiles mysteriously. Which isn't difficult, since every smile of hers looks mysterious with her wearing her black hooded cloak.

Both mages sigh and shake their heads. "Oh well, I suppose we will find out your plan soon enough. Aside from your ongoing stories, are you working on anything new?" The Dark Magician looks around, frowning slightly. "Where is my teacup?"

Shadow's Mirror snickers as Chaos sighs and hands the rescued cup to the younger mage. "I'm working on a few new things, actually. But I want to finish off some of my ongoing fics before I post any new chaptered ones. Still, you never know with me." She smiles serenely. Both mages shudder.

"True. I have noticed that you often seem to be heading in one direction and then you will twist your story into another direction." The Dark Magician eyes Shadow's Mirror thoughtfully. "Sometimes I think you delight in leading your readers on such a twisting ride through your stories."

The Authoress's eyes gleam and she smirks, but makes no reply. Instead, she stretches and sighs. "Ah well, I suppose I'd better get back before I'm missed. Vash is probably looking for me. It should be safe for me to go back now. The objects shouldn't start flying until later tonight at the earliest."

She stands and returns her teacup to the tray with a smile. "Thanks for the tea!" She turns to Chaos and smiles wryly at him. "And thank you for bringing me here when I turned up at the fortress by mistake. No, really, thank you! If I'd run into the Elders, they probably would have lectured me!"

Chaos smiles. "More likely they would have asked you to edit one of their manuscripts."

Shadow's Mirror shudders. "In that case, remind me to write you a nice big part in one of my stories as a thank you for saving me from such an awful fate!"

The Dark Magician snickers as Chaos's cheeks darken to purple with his blush. "Oh dear… I am not certain that would be… wise…" Having heard from D. Human about some of Shadow's Mirror's stories, Chaos glances at the younger mage for help.

"Oh no, do not look at me like that! This is your own fault entirely! You should have left her wandering around instead of guiding her here. Then she would not be so grateful to you." The Dark Magician pauses, frowning.

"Come to think of it, why is it that whenever Shadow's Mirror turns up in the Shadow Realm, I am always the one who ends up either being sent for, or has her delivered to me? Why does no one ever call Dark Witch, or take her to see the Spirit of the Books or someone?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs as she creates a shadow portal with a wave of her hand. "Silly. It's simple. They all know the truth about you and I."

The Dark Magician's frown deepens. "Truth? What truth?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs again as she steps through the portal, leaving behind a very frustrated mage.

"What truth?" He pouts as the portal closes. "Bother. I hate it when she does that."

"She means that we all know who she is. Therefore, we also know of the connection between the two of you." The Magician of Black Chaos finishes his tea and rises from his chair. "It is only right that you should be her guide and protector in this Realm of Shadows." He stretches and smiles down at the younger mage.

"After all, my brother, she **is** the keeper of your card."

To be continued…


	8. The Eighth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 1: Text in **bold** is being emphasised.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: This is part of my special Christmas update, a thank-you gift for everyone who's reading my stories. I've updated all five of my ongoing Yu-Gi-Oh! stories and posted a one-shot Christmas fic too. Merry Christmas everyone!

**Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 8: The Eighth Show**  
By Shadow's Mirror

**_Show aired December 25, 2004_**

The camera slowly pans around the library/study of the Dark Magician's tower home but it is obvious that something is wrong. There is no cheerfully crackling fire in the grate and both of the comfy, overstuffed armchairs placed before the hearth are empty. The room is dark, as though night has fallen, although through the window it's revealed that it is merely a stormy day. Rain is teeming down and there is an occasional flash of lightning and rumble of thunder.

The scene halts on the cold hearth as the camera stops moving and D. Human's voice comes from behind it, filled with confusion. "Did I get the right day? What in the Shadows is going on around here? First Dark Witch vanishes for two weeks without a word, and now the Dark Magician and Shadow's Mirror seem to have vanished too. I don't like this. I feel so alone… Dark Witch… where are you? Where is everyone?"

A loud rumble of thunder comes from outside, as if in response to the sad question. At the same time though, the door to the room slowly opens. "D Human? Are you in here?"

"Huh? Dark Magician Girl!" The camera suddenly tilts wildly, as if someone accidentally hit it, and there is the sound of running feet followed by an enthusiastic glomping sound.

"D Human! Get off!" The Dark Magician Girl giggles as she speaks. "What's gotten into you all of a sudden? I thought you reserved your glomps for Dark Witch?"

"Yeah… well…" There's a moment of silence and then suddenly a loud wail rings through the room, accompanied with gulps and choked words. "Dark Witch is… g…gone!"

"Aw, come on D. Human. Don't cry! It's okay! She'll be back soon!"

"B…but now the Dark Magician and Shadow's Mirror are g…gone too!"

"Come over here and sit down." The tilted camera is pointing down at the floor and two pairs of feet are briefly seen as the Dark Magician Girl leads D. Human to the armchairs. There is a muttered word and suddenly the room is filled with dancing light and the cheerful crackle of a fire. "There. That's better. Oh! The camera's tilted."

The Dark Magician Girl's feet appear and then her legs. As the camera is tilted up again, it pans up her body until her pale face is seen. She looks tired and ill, but she's still smiling slightly as she nods in satisfaction at the camera before returning to the chairs. She pauses for a moment behind the chair her teacher usually occupies. Her hand lightly runs over the top of it and she sighs softly, then sits down.

D. Human, now occupying the other chair, looks over at her anxiously. His face is wet with tears but at least he's stopped wailing. "You don't look well. Are you okay?"

The Dark Magician Girl smiles slightly. "Thanks. That's just what every girl wants to hear!" When her weak joke doesn't earn so much as a smile from the worried Shadow Monster, she sighs softly. "I'm fine, just tired. It doesn't help that the Shadow Magic is so wild at the moment either. I have to call a lot of it just to do the simplest things, so it drains me more quickly." She turns and stares into the fire. "I'm not exactly weak, but it's affecting the others even more. The Dark Magician doesn't say anything, but I can see how he's struggling these days. He's been seriously ill for the past week but he's making himself worse with worry and overwork."

D. Human nods. "I know, Mystical Elf is so pale these days she's almost like a ghost. Even Dark Witch hasn't been feeling the best for the past month or so, and she hardly ever does magic. That's why I'm so worried. Dark Witch usually says something if she's gonna be away for a while. But I didn't even know she'd gone anywhere until she didn't show up for breakfast. That's not like her. And today, we were supposed to be taping a show and no one's here. Where are the Dark Magician and Shadow's Mirror?"

He pauses for a moment, sniffing sadly, then looks up again. "Dark Magician Girl… what's going on? I know there's something. Please tell me. I just want to help."

"I know you do. I didn't agree with Dark Witch when she said she wasn't going to tell you. She didn't want you to worry, but she didn't think she'd be gone this long either. It was only supposed to be a quick trip. But…" The Dark Magician Girl looks away, staring into the fire again.

"Something went wrong, didn't it? Is she okay?" D. Human's voice shakes and his fists clench tightly.

"Oh, no, she's fine! Really!" the Dark Magician Girl quickly reassures him. She sighs softly. "I guess I'd better explain, but I'm not sure where to begin."

"How about at the beginning? Isn't that where stories usually start?"

"All right. Well, it all started a few months ago, when the weather in the Shadow Realm began to go wrong and the Shadow Magic began to go wild. Of course, it had all happened before, so we knew what was going on, and what to expect. But this time… it turned out that we didn't know at all."

D. Human nods, shivering. "It's much worse this time, and it usually only lasts for a few weeks."

"Yes, the longer it goes on, the worse it gets. We weren't expecting that. We also didn't know what would happen. As the days passed, the wildness of the Shadow Magic began to affect the weaker Shadow Monsters. They became aggressive… well… more so than usual, I mean. Even the most passive of them became dangerous. It was only affecting the ones out in the wild though. The ones like Kuriboh and Fusionist, who spend most of their time inside, weren't affected. As the days passed, the… madness… began to spread to the stronger monsters. It also became more and more difficult for us spellcasters to use the Shadow Magic. That's what things were like two weeks ago."

"Which is when Dark Witch disappeared." D. Human frowns slightly as the Dark Magician Girl nods.

"Yes." She turns and gazes into the fire, her eyes troubled. "What you don't know is that we had a visitor at the castle that night. It was about three in the morning when I woke up. I knew right away that something was wrong. Terribly wrong. I could feel it in the air. The Shadow Magic was stirring and it felt… angry. I'd never sensed anything like it. I was scared. So I woke Dark Witch to see if she could feel it too. As soon as she opened her eyes… I'd never seen her move so fast! She was up and out the door in moments and I had to run to keep up with her. I tried to ask her what was going on, but she looked at me with such fear in her eyes that I couldn't finish the question. Then we got to the front door and she stopped. She told me to stay there, that she didn't know what was going on, but she was going to go and find out. Of course, I refused to stay behind."

"You should have woken me too. I would have gone with her."

The Dark Magician Girl shakes her head. "We didn't go anywhere. We just opened the door and… there he was."

"He?"

"The Magician of Black Chaos. He was struggling through the snow towards us. I'm surprised you didn't wake up when I screamed. Talk about startled! Remember the blizzard that had started the afternoon before?" D. Human nods. "Well it was still going. I don't know how he made it so far, but he'd managed to fight his way through the blizzard to get to us."

"It must have been important," D. Human gently nudges when the Dark Magician Girl pauses.

"It was." She pauses again, but only to sigh heavily. "Fire Sorcerer had fallen ill the day before, but he got worse in the night. His guardian was beside himself with worry. He knew what the problem was and it wasn't with Fire Sorcerer." She glances at D. Human meaningfully. He gasps, understanding.

"You mean… Oh no! But then… Dark Witch…" He shakes his head, panic in his eyes. "No… No she wouldn't have gone there… Not alone!"

"She wasn't alone. The Magician of Black Chaos went with her." D. Human's eyes widen at that.

"What? But… but he never goes anywhere! I mean… he's always around so he can carry messages and stuff for the elders. How could he just go off and leave them to fend for themselves? Especially with everything that's going on right now."

"That's why he was able to." The Dark Magician Girl smiles slightly as D. Human gives her a totally baffled look. "The elders are all keeping to their fortress at the moment. With things the way they are, there's really nothing that they needed him for. Besides, they agreed that this was more important. He was needed."

"So he and Dark Witch went… to the mountains?" D. Human shivers as the Dark Magician Girl nods silently. "But why didn't she say anything? Why didn't she tell me?" His voice is soft and very sad as he bows his head and sniffs. The Dark Magician Girl leans over and gently pats his knee.

"She didn't want you to worry. They thought it would be easy. She even joked that I'd better make sure that you didn't try one of your cooking experiments, because she'd want a decent meal that night."

D. Human raises his head, frowning slightly as he takes that in. "She expected to be back that day?"

The Dark Magician Girl nods, then sighs softly. "That was the plan. The mountain isn't that far away. A few hours to get there, then a few hours back, since the state of the Shadow Magic meant that they couldn't just teleport there. But the weather turned out to be more of a problem than they thought it would be. Not only did it make their journey more difficult, but it's also made the mountain almost impossible to search. Also, the magic is really strong there and at the moment it's completely wild. Without it, they have to search the hard way and the ones they're trying to find have been driven deep inside the mountain's caves by the weather. The Dark Magician's been keeping an eye on them, but the drain on his power for even the simplest spell is great and the spells he's been using to watch them are far from simple." She sighs again, her expression troubled.

"He made himself ill by doing it, but he wouldn't stop. These past few days, I've barely been able to persuade him to rest at all." Her voice trembles and she pauses to take a few calming breaths. It's D. Human's turn to pat her knee in comfort and she smiles weakly at him in response.

"So is that where he is now? Resting?"

"Not exactly…" The Dark Magician Girl smiles ever so slightly. "This morning, when I reminded him about the interview today, he told me to contact Shadow's Mirror and reschedule it. You know what she's like though. Two minutes into the conversation and she knew the whole story. As soon as our conversation ended, I came up here again and… she had already arrived!"

That earns a small chuckle from D. Human. "I'm sure the Dark Magician was pleased."

The Dark Magician Girl looks thoughtful. "Actually… I think he was. At least a little. He only put up a small fuss when she ordered him to sit down. I went out of the room for a little while then to make him some tea and when I got back, he was fast asleep in his chair and Shadow's Mirror…" She pauses, frowning as she remembers the scene she'd walked in on.

"You know D. Human, sometimes I think she isn't just an Authoress. There's something about her… When I came back into the room, she was using the Shadow Magic as though she was one of us."

"Well, she does write about it a lot. Maybe that gives her the ability to use it."

"Maybe." The Dark Magician Girl shrugs and returns to the matter at hand. "Anyway, she managed to find them."

"Find them? You mean…" D. Human stares at her in shock. "She found them?"

The Dark Magician Girl giggles softly. "Isn't that what I just said?" D. Human sinks back into his chair as she nods. "That's how the Dark Magician reacted to the news too. So, that's where he and Shadow's Mirror are at the moment. They went to the mountain to get Dark Witch and the Magician of Black Chaos and take them to the others. Then they're going to take all of them to the fortress."

"**All** of them?" D. Human falls silent for a moment, thinking about that. "It's that serious?" he finally asks quietly. The Dark Magician Girl nods silently in response.

For several long moments, the only sound in the room is the crackle of the fire. The two Shadow Monsters gaze into the flames, both lost in thought. Finally, D. Human breaks the silence.

"Well… I guess I'd better pack up the equipment, since we're not taping tonight after all." He starts to get up but the Dark Magician Girl shakes her head, stopping him. He looks at her curiously. "No? Why not? Oh! Was there something that the Dark Magician wanted me to do tonight instead?"

The Dark Magician Girl smiles, her first full smile throughout the whole conversation. "No, but he wouldn't be very happy to find you gone when they get back. They should be here any minute now."

D. Human stares at her. "But… how? You said they just left this morning, so surely they won't be back for at least a few days. Why are you laughing? All right, what am I missing here?"

"Remember I said that Shadow's Mirror can use the Shadow Magic? Well apparently she can also use portals without any trouble at all at the moment! She and the Dark Magician left a few hours ago, but they promised that they'd be back in time to start taping. You always show up early, so I was asked to fill you in on everything and keep you company until they got back."

"Oh." D. Human leans back in the chair and a change seems to come over him. In that moment, it's as if the weight of all of his cares and worries has lifted from his heart. Releasing a long sigh, he closes his eyes. "So… Dark Witch will be home soon."

The Dark Magician Girl smiles. Before she can speak though, a bright ball of white and silver light appears in the middle of the room. The girl squeals happily at the sight of it, causing D. Human's eyes to snap open in surprise. He stares at the orb as it begins to grow.

"What in the Shadows is that?"

"One of the most annoying modes of transportation I have at my disposal." Shadow's Mirror's voice comes out of the light. A moment later, her cloaked form steps out of the portable portal of light. "No matter how careful I am, I always get my cloak hopelessly rumpled in that thing."

As she shakes out her voluminous black velvet cloak, the Dark Magician steps out of the portal as well. The Dark Magician Girl immediately jumps up and runs a few steps towards him before stopping abruptly. She looks down in apparent shyness. "Welcome home, Dark Magician," she says in soft formality. The Dark Magician smiles slightly and takes a step towards her, then falters. Shadow's Mirror instantly grabs him and D. Human and the Dark Magician Girl are soon at his side too.

When the Dark Magician is settled in his comfy chair in front of the fireplace, he smiles tiredly up at the three hovering anxiously around him. "I am fine. Merely a little… tired." He looks around the room and his gaze comes to rest on the camera. "Ah! Yes! Shadow's Mirror, we should get started on…"

"Oh no you don't!" D. Human glares at the Dark Magician as he interrupts. "First of all, you're going to tell me where Dark Witch is! Then you're going to tell us what happened!"

"Then you're going straight to bed!" As everyone blinks at the Dark Magician Girl, she blushes. "Um… because you look really ill and I know how exhausted you must be and…"

"I'd stop there, if I were you. If you keep going, you'll be rambling and I do quite enough of that in this show as it is." Shadow's Mirror grins and winks at the blushing Dark Magician Girl before turning to the Dark Magician. She studies him for a moment, then nods decisively.

"I'll explain what's happened while you rest. If you're more than half awake by the time I've finished, we'll do the interview. Otherwise, I agree with the Dark Magician Girl. You need to rest. Considering what's coming, you'll need all your strength."

"Very well." The Dark Magician closes his eyes, missing the concerned looks that the other three give each other. He didn't argue about it. That's not a good sign.

Shadow's Mirror waves her hand and two more comfy armchairs appear from thin air. As soon as the Dark Magician Girl and D. Human are comfortably seated in them, Shadow's Mirror sinks into her own chair and smiles at them. "Okay…" She looks at the Dark Magician Girl. "You filled him in?" At her nod, Shadow's Mirror turns to gaze into the fire.

"When the Dark Magician and I arrived at the mountain, things were pretty bad. We found them no trouble at all. Dark Witch was so glad to see us, she actually hugged both of us. Yes," Shadow's Mirror nods at the startled looks from her audience. "**Both** of us. I wasn't surprised, when I saw Chaos. She must have been relieved to know that help had arrived." She sighs heavily.

"The Dark Magician had been keeping track of them as best he could, but there's a lot of magical interference in that area, so tracking and scrying spells don't work as well as they should. He could tell where they were, but most of the time he wasn't able to get any sort of visual, let alone one clear enough for him to notice that Chaos was ill."

The Dark Magician Girl and D. Human both gasp. "Chaos is ill?" The Dark Magician Girl bites her lip. "What's wrong with him? Will he be all right?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles and leans over, patting the concerned Shadow Monster's leg reassuringly. "Yes, he'll be fine. He just needs to rest and warm up. He battled the storm from the Fortress to the Castle of Dark Illusions and then, without any rest, from there to the library and then on to the mountain. It would have been hard on him even with his magic, but without it…" She shakes her head. "Frankly, I'm amazed he made it as far as he did before he collapsed."

"Chaos… collapsed?" D. Human and the Dark Magician Girl both stare at Shadow's Mirror, obviously deeply shocked. "But… he's always so strong… so… vibrant…" D. Human trails off, shaking his head.

"Yeah." Shadow's Mirror sighs and stares into the fire. "But even the Magician of Black Chaos can't withstand freezing temperatures for almost two weeks without rest. According to Dark Witch, he insisted on taking the watch whenever they stopped. She's also pretty sure he was using his power to keep her warm, whenever he could get away with it. But finally, his strength just gave out. He collapsed yesterday afternoon and it took all of Dark Witch's power and ingenuity to look after him."

Shadow's Mirror shook her head slightly. "She is truly remarkable. She didn't have enough strength to get them to safety magically, so she dug a nice little snow cave and pulled him inside it. Then she just cuddled with him until we got there. In fact, they were so snug that Chaos was drifting in and out of consciousness by the time we arrived. According to Dark Witch, it was a huge improvement over how he had been last night."

D. Human smiles through the tears shimmering in his eyes. "That's my girl. Quick thinking and good in a crisis." He leans forward, looking anxious. "Why did she not return with you? Is she all right?"

"She's fine." Shadow's Mirror smiles at D. Human. "She was more cold and tired than anything. She stayed with the others to rest up. I'll go get her later."

"Oh good." D. Human sighs with relief. Then he frowns slightly. "The others… You found them?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "Once we got Chaos and Dark Witch out of the snow cave, I used a simple locating spell and transported the four of us to the cavern where the others were."

The Dark Magician Girl bites her lip again. "H…How are they?"

Shadow's Mirror bows her head, the hood of her cloak shadowing her eyes. When she speaks, her voice is soft and sad. "They're all in pretty bad shape. Not just from the cold either. The illness has taken its toll on them. They didn't put up more than a token argument before agreeing to go to the fortress. That mountain… It was safe for them there as long as the Shadow Magic was in balance, but they should have left the moment the balance shifted."

D. Human sighs heavily. "You know them. Stubborn, every single one. This whole isolation thing was their idea from the start and they'd never admit that it was a mistake."

"True." Shadow's Mirror nods. "Although… It was a good idea, in theory. As long as their existence remains unknown, we'll have the advantage in the coming battle. You can't guard against what you don't know exists, after all. But to go to the mountain… No, I agree with you there. That was a very bad idea. And one that they're paying for, right now. Poor dears."

"What will happen to them now?" The Dark Magician Girl searches Shadow's Mirror's eyes anxiously. "I wish we could…" She bites her lip, stopping herself from voicing what can only be a dream.

"I know." Shadow's Mirror smiles gently at the female Shadow Monster. "Some day, you will be able to stand with them, side by side. All of you. I promise. But that day is still some time off. Although… maybe not as far off as all that." A distant look enters her eyes as she turns to gaze into the fire again.

Several minutes pass in silence before Shadow's Mirror stirs. She looks to her left, past the Dark Magician Girl, to the Dark Magician's chair. A soft chuckle escapes her when she sees that he is sound asleep. Glancing to her right, she winks at D. Human. "No interview tonight."

As the two Shadow Monsters chuckle, Shadow's Mirror frowns in concentration and makes a flicking sort of motion with her fingers towards the Dark Magician. A soft silvery glow surrounds him for a moment before fading. "There. Now we won't need to be quiet for fear of waking him. He'll sleep through until dawn."

The Dark Magician Girl sighs in relief and smiles at Shadow's Mirror. "Oh thank you! He really needs the rest! He's been driving himself so hard, lately."

Shadow's Mirror nods, smiling slightly as she watches the young mage sleep. "I'm not surprised. Of everyone in the Shadow Realm, he has the most to lose or gain from what's coming. He… and Dark Witch. Speaking of…"

With a wave of her hand, a shadowy portal forms on the other side of the room. Shadow's Mirror winks at D. Human. "The Dark Magician kicked up such a fuss about her staying and resting that she agreed, but not before making me promise to bring her here as soon as he fell asleep. I think she's anxious to see a certain someone."

D. Human blushes at her words even as he jumps to his feet. By the time Dark Witch steps through the portal, he is waiting for her.

"Hey! D. Human! Put me down!" The female Shadow Monster laughs as D. Human lifts her up and swings her around happily. As he lowers her feet to the floor again, she puts her arms around his neck and hugs him hard. "I missed you too." Her voice is suspiciously shaky.

"Don't you ever, ever, **ever** do that again!" D. Human holds her tightly as he scolds her. "Have you any idea how worried I've been?"

Dark Witch pushes against him gently until he releases her. She catches his hands in hers and smiles at him. "I know. I am sorry. I thought it was only going to be a quick trip. Had I known otherwise, I would have told you all about it."

D. Human frowns at her. "I would have gone with you."

Dark Witch leans in and gently kisses his cheek. "I know that too."

"I hate to break up this charming reunion, but…" Shadow's Mirror voice apparently reminds the two Monsters where they are. They quickly break apart, their cheeks tinged with colour. Shadow's Mirror chuckles at their reaction. "It's time I was heading off home. If you guys want a lift…"

"Please!" Dark Witch shudders. "I have no wish to go out in that storm again for quite some time." D. Human nods in agreement.

Shadow's Mirror chuckles and turns to the Dark Magician Girl. "I'm assuming that you're staying here with him?" She grins as the girl's blush and nod confirms it. "Good. He'll sleep through until dawn but if he still looks tired and pale, just tap him on the head and say 'sleep' and he'll drift off for a few more hours. You'll probably be able to do that two, maybe three, times before he catches on." She winks and then gets out of her chair.

One wave of her hand later and another dark portal shimmers into existence on the other side of the room. Shadow's Mirror makes a beeline for it. "Goodbye Giel. Tell him I'll stop by for a visit some day next week, would you please? Okay you two, come along! Next stop, the Castle of Dark Illusions!" She steps through the portal.

D. Human starts to follow but pauses as Dark Witch hesitates. He glances at her and receives a nod.

"You go on ahead, I'll be there in a minute."

As D. Human heads through the portal, Dark Witch crosses over to the sleeping mage. She looks down at him for a moment, a thoughtful look on her face. Then she leans down and lightly kisses his cheek before whispering in his ear. "Thank you for coming after us. Thank you for worrying about us. Thank you for watching over us." She kisses his cheek again, then straightens and rests her hand lightly on his shoulder for a moment before turning and crossing to the portal.

Dark Witch begins to step into the shimmering darkness but pauses for a moment. Glancing over her shoulder, she smiles at the Dark Magician Girl. "Look after him."

"I will."

The two female Monsters share a smile and a nod of understanding. Dark Witch turns back to the portal and steps through, pausing only long enough to say one last thing.

"Sleep well, my brother."

To be continued…


	9. The Ninth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi. Olwen and Elfin are original characters belonging to Vash is my Angel and are mentioned here with her knowledge, permission and approval. The song 'Can you Feel the Love Tonight' was written by Elton John for the movie 'The Lion King', which is copyright to Disney.

**Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 9: The Ninth Show**  
By Shadow's Mirror

**__**

Show aired July 25, 2005

D. Human checks his camera and nods to the Dark Magician. "It's all ready to go! Now we just need Shadow's Mirror and we can start taping the show." He pauses for a moment, then hesitantly adds, "Are you sure she's going to come tonight? She's rescheduled this at least ten times so far."

The Dark Magician nods and smiles serenely as he leans back in his comfortable armchair. "Oh yes. She will be here. Gaia is escorting her personally." He and D. Human trade smiles at the thought of the strong young knight, with a reputation for being one of the most stubborn of all the Shadow Monsters.

"She won't stand a chance." D. Human hums cheerfully as he gets out another video in preparation for the extra long interview that the Dark Magician has planned.

Before the mage can respond, a portal of swirling black shadows appears on the far side of the room. Gaia the Fierce Knight steps out of the darkness and smiles at them. "I have returned."

"So we see." The Dark Magician arches an eyebrow and stares in bemusement at the pair of black sneakers kicking the air in front of the Knight. His eyes travel up over a pair of trim ankles to where black velvet billows around the lower half of the figure Gaia is carrying over his shoulder. "I take it that Shadow's Mirror attempted to reschedule this interview again?"

Gaia scowls and nods. "She certainly did. But I told her that she was just being silly and brought her here anyway." He smiles with a sweetness to rival that of any light's. "Where do you want her?"

"Ah... Just there if you would not mind." The Dark Magician gestures to the other chair positioned in front of the fireplace and watches in silent amusement as Gaia carries his bundle over.

As the knight turns around to face the chair, the top half of his captive comes into the mage's line of sight and the source of the soft thumping sounds he'd been wondering about is revealed. Shadow's Mirror pummels her small fists ineffectively against the knight's back until he suddenly bends forward, depositing her into the chair with a solid whump. She pushes back the hood of her cloak, which had fallen over her face while being carried, and glares at him.

"Thank you so much for carrying me around as if I was a sack of potatoes!"

Gaia grins at her. "You are most welcome." As she makes inarticulate sounds of rage, he nods politely to the Dark Magician. "If there is anything else, please do not hesitate to call me. I am pleased to have been of assistance to you, Dark Magician."

"Thank you Gaia." The mage waits until the knight leaves, and his urge to laugh subsides, before turning his head to smile at his guest.

"Greetings, Shadow's Mirror. Thank you so much for agreeing to be interviewed again tonight."

The girl sighs and shakes her head. "I should have known you would find a way to get me here." She scowls at the mage and then sighs again, her scowl becoming a wry smile. "But honestly, did it have to be Gaia? He has all the tact of a herd of stampeding camels."

The Dark Magician chuckles softly. "My apologies for that. Considering how many times you have rescheduled, I felt that a little... persuasion... might be needed."

"Persuasion? Is that what they're calling it now? I call it being unfair to busy authoresses." A twinkle in Shadow's Mirror's eyes reveals that she is not as upset about it as she seems.

"Busy? Ah! Is that why you have not graced us with your presence for so long?" He leans forward as Shadow's Mirror winces and shifts in obvious discomfort. "How long has it been now? Six months?"

"Seven." D. Human's overly-cheerful voice comes from off-camera. "She was here at Christmas."

"So she was." The mage nods his thanks to D. Human for his help and then fixes Shadow's Mirror with a sad look. "Seven months since you last agreed to be interviewed. That is a very long time. Are you, perhaps, becoming bored with us?"

"Oh no! Nothing like that!" Shadow's Mirror is quick to respond. "It's just been a very busy year for me so far."

"So busy that you have not had time to write at all? I have noticed that you have posted only two stories since your impressive six story Christmas update, and they were some time ago. Would you care to tell our audience about them?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "Actually, those stories are part of the reason why I haven't written anything in so long. You see, the day after my Christmas update, my computer died and I lost everything I had done during the eight months before that. The hardest part for me was that I lost several stories and chapters that I was working on for a New Year update. Once my computer was repaired, I managed to rewrite two of them. 'Anniversary' and 'Crosswalk' had been the last things I'd worked on and I still remembered them well enough to rewrite them. But the others were a great loss to me. Since then, I've found it very difficult to write. Every time I start something, I find myself trying to recreate something I lost and then I get frustrated because I can't remember the others well enough to rewrite them."

The Dark Magician leans forward and gently pats her knee, his voice soft and heavy with sympathy. "I am sorry. How many stories did you lose?"

The girl thinks for a moment. "I was working on six things at the time. I had one finished story, which was 'Anniversary'. I also had about two thirds of 'Crosswalk' written. Those were the two I rewrote fairly easily. I also lost the dialogue for the first chapter of a new series called 'The Counselor', the second chapter of a companion piece to 'Library' called 'A Life for a Life', I had started chapter three of 'Visitors' and I had the first chapter and two sections of dialogue for a special story called 'At the Beginning'. That last one and the chapter of 'Life' hit me the hardest. I'd worked very hard on both of them and I was devastated at their loss."

"I see." The Dark Magician nods and pats her knee again. "I must admit, I am a little surprised. You said at one point that you would not be working on anything new until you had some of your existing stories finished, and yet all of the stories you just mentioned are new, with the exception of 'Visitors'. I believe that refers to your Inu Yasha story, 'Visitors to a Feudal Fairytale'?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "That's the one, yes. I did say that, true. Most of my ongoing stories are at points now where they are very difficult to write. I'm having considerable trouble with some of them and I've found that the most effective way to get inspiration for my ongoing stories is to work on other stories. Short one-shots like 'Anniversary' get me into the right frame of mind to write but they also give me a bit of a break from my ongoing stories. Considering how much work I put into my longer stories, the short fics are a welcome relief."

The mage slowly nods, looking thoughtful. "I can see how tiring it would be if you were to work on your ongoing fics constantly, without a break. However, it has been so long since you last wrote anything... May we expect to see something from you soon? You said that one of the things you lost was the second chapter to a companion piece to 'Library', yet I do not recall your posting the first chapter. Will we be seeing that at some point?"

"Yes, you certainly will be." Shadow's Mirror grins and leans back in her chair. Her grin widens as the silence stretches and the Dark Magician begins to fidget in his seat.

He sighs. "Will you tell us a bit about it?" He gives her a long-suffering look as she chuckles.

"Oh, I suppose I could." The girl's eyes twinkle with mischief. "As I said before, it's a companion piece to 'Library', something like 'The Cinderella Spell' was to 'Source'. It's not necessary to read one to understand the other, but it provides more background information on a particular aspect of 'Library'. I've had the first chapter written since around chapter ten of 'Library', but I wanted to get a bit more of it written before I posted it. I wasn't sure if it was a chaptered fic or a one-shot, at that point. Now that I'm sure it's a chaptered fic, I can post the first chapter."

The Dark Magician leans forward eagerly, his eyes gleaming with interest. "So you will be posting that chapter soon?"

Shadow's Mirror nods and smiles. "So soon that it's already been posted as we speak!" She winks at the delighted mage.

"Wonderful! I look forward to reading it! 'Library' started off, I believe I am correct in saying, as a Yugi and Yami fic, but has since incorporated the other characters also. Is this companion story about a character in particular?" The Dark Magician can barely sit still, he is so excited about a new story.

The girl chuckles. "It's about two characters, in a way. 'Life' is similar to 'The Cinderella Spell' in more ways than one. Not only is it a companion piece to a longer story, but it focuses on the Shadow Monsters rather than on the Duelists."

The Dark Magician beams at her. "Is this about me?"

Shadow's Mirror laughs. "I believe you will be in it at some point." She winks at him.

"Oh it sounds like a wonderful story!" The mage continues to beam at her, obviously very happy to be in the story at some point. After a moment, he settles down enough to continue with the interview. "You include the Shadow Monsters fairly often, often creating lives and facts about them. Is there a reason for that?"

"To me, the Monsters are just as much a part of the Yu-Gi-Oh! world as Yugi or Bakura. There are so many stories about the Duelist characters that finding a plot or an idea that hasn't already been used by someone else is very difficult. Writing about the Monsters isn't as popular and you can do so much more using the Shadow Realm as a background, rather than Domino City. Also, because there isn't nearly as much official information about the Realm and the Shadow Monsters, it means that a writer can be more creative when it comes to things like a Monster's personality or life within the Shadow Realm. Also," Shadow's Mirror grins, "I rather like working with the Monsters. They're fun to write."

The Dark Magician smiles at her. "Why thank you. So 'Life' is about the Shadow Monsters. Do any of the Duelists make an appearance in it?"

Shadow's Mirror considers for a moment. "I don't believe so. In fact, I'm expecting to receive similar reviews for the first chapter as I did for the first chapter of 'Hearts'. There were a few readers who asked me when the Duelists were coming into it and who suggested that having original characters in the first chapter wasn't a good idea. Any reader who is after a fic purely about the Duelists or where every chapter is set in a recognisable setting using recognisable characters will be unhappy with me over 'Life'. I'm hoping that there will be some readers who will stick with the story despite that."

The mage blinks at her. "Oh really? Why do you believe readers will be unhappy with you?"

"Most of the story is set in a small European country. The first chapter sets the scene and the main characters come into the story in the second chapter. At first glance, I'm sure most people will go 'huh? Is this really a Yu-Gi-Oh! story? It's not even set in Domino City!' I don't want to give away too much about the plot so I'll just say that yes, it is a Yu-Gi-Oh! story and yes, there will be characters from the series in later chapters. I will also say that 'Life' is very similar to 'Hearts' in a certain way. But what that way is, I'm not telling because it would give too much away for both stories." Shadow's Mirror's eyes twinkle as she pokes her tongue out at the Dark Magician.

"Tease." The mage sighs and smiles slightly. "It sounds like an interesting story. You seem to enjoy setting your stories in unexpected places."

Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "Yes, I do. I don't want to be a writer that always does the expected. I like doing the unexpected so that when I do the expected, it isn't expected and so comes as a surprise." She smiles serenely as the mage blinks and tries to work out exactly what she just said.

"Ah. I see." The Dark Magician looks very confused but he carries on with the interview anyway. "Shadow's Mirror, it has been quite some time since you last wrote anything. You mentioned before that you had been busy and that you had found it difficult to write without dwelling on what you had lost, does that mean that you have not been able to write anything in all that time?"

"Yes and no." Shadow's Mirror shifts more comfortably in her chair and turns her head, staring into the fire for a moment while she composes her thoughts. When she looks back at the mage sitting opposite her, the girl's eyes are sad. "After rewriting what I could, namely 'Anniversary' and 'Crosswalk', I tried to figure out what to do about the other things I'd lost and I realised that I couldn't remember enough about them to rewrite them. It was as if that realisation sapped my urge to write. I tried and I spent hours just staring at a blank page. If I don't feel like writing, I can't force myself to write. I had exhausted myself working on the Christmas update too, which didn't help. So I took a little break."

The Dark Magician arches an eyebrow. "Six or seven months is your idea of a 'little break'?"

Shadow's Mirror chuckles and shakes her head. "My break was about a month, but when I tried to write again... that was when I found myself dwelling on my lost stories. Every time I started to write a chapter of an ongoing story, I'd have to stop because it wasn't what I wanted to be writing. But what I wanted to write, I couldn't write at that point. So, since then, I've been waiting."

"Waiting until what you wanted to write came to you?" The Dark Magician smiles at her in sympathy.

"That's right." Shadow's Mirror sighs and looks down at her hands, folded neatly in her lap. "It's been very frustrating for me." Her voice is so soft that the Dark Magician has to lean forward to hear it.

He pats her knee gently and his voice is kind. "I am sure it has been. When I asked you if you had written anything recently though, you answered 'yes and no'. Were you speaking about the two stories you had rewritten or dare I hope that you have been able to resume writing?"

Shadow's Mirror looks up and smiles at the mage. "A couple of weeks ago, I had some free time and I felt the urge to read through some of my Yu-Gi-Oh! fics. One of the ones I read was the first chapter of 'Life'. I finished reading it and I was about to close the file when the opening lines of the second chapter were suddenly in my mind. A few hours later, I had the second chapter rewritten. It's not the same as it was when I lost it, but I'm happy with it."

The Dark Magician smiles at her. "Oh that is wonderful news! Congratulations! So will you be posting both chapters at once, then?"

"No. I'm just posting the first chapter for now." Seeing the disappointment on the mage's face, Shadow's Mirror smiles and explains. "I want to get a bit further in 'Library' before I get too far into 'Life'. The two are connected and I don't want to spoil either of them."

"Ah! Understandable." The Dark Magician leans back in his chair and raises an eyebrow. "So does this mean that you are able to write again now, or are you still finding it difficult?"

A mischievous smile curves Shadow's Mirror's lips. "The only difficulty now is the fact that most of my ongoing stories are currently simmering. The only one that's come to the boil so far is the next chapter of 'Hearts'." She waits patiently for her words to sink in. She is not disappointed.

The Dark Magician smiles and begins to nod, then pauses as her words hit him. His eyes widen and he blinks at her in shock, then a bright smile lights up his entire face. "You mean... Have you finished it? Is it being posted soon? Oh my, this is marvelous news!" He is practically bouncing in his chair.

Shadow's Mirror's laughter ripples through the room. "Yes it is finished, I have already posted it and yes, it is marvelous news."

Eagerly, the Dark Magician leans forward. "Tell us about it!"

The girl laughs again and nods. "All right, but just a little because I don't want to spoil it. Chapter five basically brings the story up to what will be the first of the main chapters in the fic. It's a transitional chapter so there's not much action or excitement in it. But on the bright side, it's the last background chapter. The next chapter is where things start getting explained and things become more interesting. I'm really looking forward to writing it. I've had it in my mind for well over a year now, so I know how it goes. Hopefully that means that it won't be long before it comes off simmer."

The Dark Magician's eyes are shining with curiosity and interest. "Oh that next chapter does sound good! I do believe you are critisising your work somewhat harshly, however. I have not found your story to be dull at all."

Shadow's Mirror grins at him. "You are so good for my ego. Seriously, I know there will be some readers who will wonder if the only thing Yu-Gi-Oh! related in that fic is the fact that it involves the use and control of Shadow Magic, and I just hope that readers give it a chance and stick with it. There will be recognisable characters coming into the story, but not for a while yet."

"Have you received any negative comments about that?"

"A few, yes. Some people seem to believe that Yu-Gi-Oh! stories should be about the characters from start to finish and they shouldn't have any original characters at all." Shadow's Mirror wrinkles her nose and sighs. "All I can say is that those readers who stick with that story will eventually realise that it is one of my main stories for a reason. I hope that when they realise what I've done in it, they'll go 'oh wow, I would have never guessed that'. Assuming that anyone is still reading it by the time I get up to that point," she adds with a wry grin.

The Dark Magician smiles at her. "Oh, I am sure there will be those who, like myself, have become curious over the many mysteries in that story. Such as the reason behind the lack of character names and the lack of description in regards to the characters and the mysterious items mentioned."

Shadow's Mirror smiles. "Oh I do hope you're right. I'm having a lot of fun with that, although it does make it more difficult to have to keep writing 'the magician's son' instead of his name."

Chuckling, the mage nods in agreement. "Yes, I can well imagine. So, that is two chapters that you have written recently then? Do you have anything else for us or is there anything coming soon that you wish to tell us about?"

"Hmm..." Shadow's Mirror smiles slightly. "Well, I have also posted chapter nine of 'Interview' and I'm planning on re-reading 'Library' so I hope to have a new chapter of that finished soon, too. Apart from that... well I do have a one-shot that's been posted, as well." Her eyes twinkle with mischief.

The Dark Magician arches an eyebrow and leans forward eagerly. "A new story? Oh how wonderful! What is it called? What is it about?"

The girl arches an eyebrow in return. "You know, you could just go and read it yourself." The mage pouts and gives a pleading look, causing Shadow's Mirror to laugh as she shakes her head. "Oh, don't look at me like that. I get enough of The Eyes from Ryou, Yugi, Malik and Rin from Inu Yasha." She grins. "I was just kidding. The story is called 'A Spring Musical'. Actually, it's not new. I wrote it some time ago. I didn't want to post it on its own though, and since I didn't have anything else finished until now..." She shrugs.

The Dark Magician nods. "So what is it about? It sounds like something similar to 'Gift' or 'Talent Show'. Is it a sequel? Or perhaps it is one of those stories that incorporates a song?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles and nods. "A song fic. Yes, it is. It's also very unusual. I don't normally write Alternate Universe fics, but this one is most definitely AU. It also has the dubious honour of having one of the most confusing author's notes of any fic I've written, purely because it is so difficult to explain what it is and where it came from."

"Oh?" The mage blinks. "Would you care to elaborate?"

The girl leans back in her chair, shifting to get more comfortable. "For some time now, I've been involved in a very good and very intense Yu-Gi-Oh! RP chat. It's set on a world created by my best friend, Vash is my Angel, who is a genius when it comes to creating fascinating and interesting original characters, as well as a world that is so detailed and so realistic that many of the situations have brought me to real tears. 'A Spring Musical' was written as a gift for Vash. She asked me if I would write a fic about Bakura, who I am playing in the RP, and one of her original characters, a Dark Elf named Olwen. I must admit, he is my favourite out of all her characters. I can't get enough of him." She grins as she admits to her Olwen obsession. "Anyway, I don't think she expected what I ended up writing. The scene just popped into my mind and I couldn't resist writing it."

The Dark Magician shifts slightly, as if he's not quite comfortable with the topic. "I see. So... you said it is a... song fic? What is the song?"

Shadow's Mirror's eyes gleam as she smiles serenely. "The song is 'Can you Feel the Love Tonight', from Disney's 'The Lion King'." She chuckles at the look of shock her answer receives. "Yes, that was pretty much Vash's reaction too. Although... that could have been because it wasn't only Bakura and Olwen in the fic."

The Dark Magician is obviously in shock. "You mean... you wrote a romance between Bakura and a Dark Elf named Olwen?" He stares at her, his normal composure shaken.

"Oh no!" Shadow's Mirror shakes her head. "It's not in a romantic sense. More in fun, because Bakura is so protective of Olwen and that strikes a certain someone as being rather amusing." Her eyes twinkle. "I'm not saying who that certain someone is though, that would spoil the story."

"Well at least it is not a romance." The Dark Magician sighs in relief and Shadow's Mirror chuckles.

"Somehow, I can't see Olwen standing for having a romance written about him, let alone one with Bakura." Her eyes gleam as she watches the Dark Magician closely.

The mage nods thoughtfully. "True. He is rather stubborn when it comes to seeing Bakura as anything other than a nuisance." The Dark Magician freezes, his eyes going wide as he realises that he just crossed a line he had been determined not to cross. "Oh dear... I mean... That is how many people see Bakura, so Olwen is no doubt like that also." He smiles weakly at Shadow's Mirror.

"How **is** Elfin?" The girl grins at the agitated mage.

"Incredible." The Dark Magician gets a dreamy look on his face for a moment, then tenses as he realises what he just said. "Oh dear." He frowns at her. "I thought that we were not going to discuss those AU events in these interviews?" He shifts uncomfortably.

Shadow's Mirror chuckles. "We're not. I just couldn't resist." She winks at the mage as he blushes.

The Dark Magician quickly changes the topic. "Returning to the subject of your stories... With a new ongoing story, 'A Life for a Life', starting, will that not place more pressure on you as a writer?"

The girl snuggles into her comfy chair and considers the question carefully before replying. "I'm hoping that it will ease the pressure, actually. I've found that if I have a few stories going at once, then at least one is usually doing something interesting at any particular time. It's very rare for all of my stories to be simmering at once. It also gives me a break from working on the same story chapter after chapter."

"I see." The Dark Magician nods. "You are updating 'Hearts' and 'Interview' now, what of your other ongoing stories? How are they progressing? You mentioned earlier that the next chapter of 'Visitors' was among those lost. Are you rewriting it?"

Shadow's Mirror thinks for a moment. "Let's see... 'Hearts 5' has just been finished but 'Hearts 6' is very close to coming off simmer, already. 'Interview 9' has just been finished and I'm not expecting the next one of that to come for a while. 'Library' is getting stirred as soon as I leave here, so hopefully I'll have a chapter of that out soon. 'Shadows 4' is close to coming off simmer too. 'Source' is at a very difficult point at the moment. I'll see what happens with 'Library', 'Hearts' and 'Shadows' and then I'll give it a bit of a stir and see if anything interesting happens. 'Life 2' is written and I'll post it at some point in the near future. In my other fics, 'Nightmare' is on hiatus, 'Tournament' is being a pain in the tail and still simmering and 'Visitors'..." Shadow's Mirror winces.

"Oh dear. I fear that expression does not bode well." The Dark Magician leans over and pats her knee, earning himself a smile.

"I really regret not leaving that fic as a one-shot. It was complete. I got the second chapter with great difficulty. I had to drag out every word of what I got written of the third chapter and to be honest, I wasn't very upset about losing it. That's how bad it was." Shadow's Mirror shudders at the memory of the horrible chapter. "It's on simmer at the moment. Hopefully when it comes off simmer again it will be much better than the original attempt."

The Dark Magician nods and smiles at her. "I feel sure that it will be. So that means that you have now rewritten three of the six stories or chapters that you lost and you are going to rewrite 'Visitor's also. What of the other two? They were new stories, am I correct? Will you be rewriting them?"

Shadow's Mirror considers for a moment. "That's a difficult question to answer. I wasn't really sure about 'The Counselor' as a project, to begin with. The dialogue came to me for chapter one and it struck me as being something along the lines of my fic 'Conversations', in writing style not in plot. It's not really striking me as being an interesting fic and it's really just a very long set-up for a single punchline. I'm not sure it would be worth the time and effort to write it. I think it's going to be one of those stories that will be reserved for working on when I'm really bored, just to entertain myself." She grins, but then her smile fades into a very sad look.

"Shadow's Mirror?" The Dark Magician looks at her in concern, but she shakes her head and manages a small smile to reassure him that she is all right.

"The other fic is a different matter." She leans back in her chair and turns her head, staring into the fire as she speaks. "The one I miss the most... 'At the Beginning' was my timeline, transition and explanation fic. It was supposed to set the scene for all of my Yu-Gi-Oh! fics and bridge the gap between the events in the series and what happens in my stories. I had the first chapter written and I was very happy with it. But what hurts is the loss of the two conversations that I had for later chapters. I loved them when they came to me and they came so long ago that I can't remember them now. All I can remember is how perfect they were. I don't know if I can ever rewrite any of that fic. It's the one that haunts me. Whenever I write something, I keep getting glimpses of it. But they're always so intangible that I can never grasp it." She sighs and looks at the Dark Magician again. "I will be rewriting it. But not for a while."

The mage nods, understanding in his eyes. "Of course. Do not push yourself. Those of us who love your stories will wait patiently for as long as we must, for all of your stories."

Shadow's Mirror smiles slightly and nods. "Thank you."

The Dark Magician stretches slightly and considers. "The hour grows late. Was there anything more you wished to say before we conclude this interview?"

The girl's smile becomes a grin. "Just one thing... I'm back!"

The Dark Magician laughs softly and nods. "Shadow's Mirror, thank you for speaking with us today."

Shadow's Mirror smiles and nods in return. "Dark Magician, thank you for having me here." Her eyes twinkle with mischief. "So... when are you going to ask Elfin to become your bonded?"

As the camera shot fades slowly into black, the last thing seen is the deep blush staining the Dark Magician's cheeks.

To be continued…


	10. The Tenth Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

**Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 10: The Tenth Show**  
By Shadow's Mirror

_**Show aired October 27, 2007**_

A robed and hooded figure walks slowly down the hallway and turns into her computer room. She glances at the screen and sighs heavily, then begins to turn away.

"Well... that sigh certainly does not sound very hopeful."

The voice causes the figure to gasp and jump. She whirls around and stares in shock at the tall figure in the long purple robes and odd hat sitting on the couch on the far side of the room, sipping tea from a delicate china cup.

"D...Dark Magician!" She blinks at him, still in shock. "W...What are you doing here?" As her daze begins to ease, she frowns at the teacup. "I don't remember owning a tea set with female elves with long silver hair on it."

"Ah." A slight flush comes into his cheeks as the Dark Magician's teacup promptly vanishes. "You do not. I felt like a cup while I was waiting for you." He looks at her steadily. "You have kept me waiting for quite some time, Shadow's Mirror."

The girl looks away and sighs softly. "Yes. I know I have. I'm sorry."

The mage shrugs and waves off her apology with one relaxed hand. "It is fine. We have all had a good chance to rest. Well... except for me. For some reason Dark Witch has lately taken to plaguing me with a wide variety of pranks. This morning I woke up to find my bedchamber filled with Kuriboh. Yesterday she bespelled all my books to bite me. The day before that I found myself being followed around by a rain cloud that shot lightning bolts at me whenever I bent over." He sighs. "Dark Magician Girl believes she is having 'man trouble'. Or perhaps that should be 'D. Hu-man trouble'.

"That pun was terrible." Shadow's Mirror drops into the chair near her desk and arches an eyebrow at him. "So... bad jokes aside... what are you doing here?"

"Well..." The mage leans forward, his brown eyes suddenly serious. "Are you aware of what the date is?"

"The date?" The girl blinks. "Um... it's the twenty-seventh of October. Did you lose your calendar?"

"Yes, exactly!" He thumps a hand on the armrest of the sofa, then blinks. "Er... I mean... no, I have not lost my calendar. It is indeed the twenty-seventh of October!" He looks at her as if the date is supposed to have some incredible significance.

"Okaaaay... Um... Is that supposed to... mean something to me?" The girl looks baffled. "Um... Dark Magician? Are you all right?" She pokes the mage now lying on the floor in a state of extreme overreaction.

"Yes!" The mage coughs as he teleports back onto the couch. "As I was saying... Today is the twenty-seventh of October. Exactly one year, ten months and one day since the last time you updated any of your ongoing fics!"

He pouts at the blinking girl in the hooded robe. "Shadow's Mirror... you promised that your next update would not be long in coming out! Have you truly forsaken us?"

"Okay... the pout is a worry, chibi eyes on an adult mage are less than attractive... but the fact that you've actually kept track of how long it's been since I last updated is truly scary." The girl slowly inches her chair further away, eyeing him warily.

The mage droops and looks very disappointed. "So... you do not... deny it. I see." He stares down at his hands, clasped tightly in his lap.

A hand lightly rests on top of them. "Hey." Her voice is very soft and gentle. "I never said it was true, either. Sorry. You just... surprised me with what you said. I guess... I'd lost track of time. I didn't mean to be away for so long." She looks quite sheepish.

"Then..." Hope lights up his eyes as he lifts his head to look at her. "You are still planning on finishing your stories?"

She smiles and nods. "I am. It's just... taking a little longer than I expected for them to come together. It's a bit of a long story..."

The mage smiles. "Stories are what I love to hear most." He settles back in his seat.

A soft chuckle escapes the girl as she sits back in her chair as well. She grins at him. "I warn you now, this one's rather boring."

The Dark Magician returns her grin. "I do not mind."

"All right. Well, I had a few months when I was really busy and couldn't find any time at all to write. By the time I got to the point where I could write again, I found that all of my ongoing stories had... well..." She sighs. "You know how I think of stories as bubbling away in a pot? You put in the ingredients, then give it a stir, add a bit of spice and maybe a hint of sugary sweetness or some funny sauce and then you just put it aside and let it simmer for a while. When it comes to the boil, you have either a story or at least a chapter."

Her companion nods and smiles encouragingly. "Yes, I remember you saying that."

Shadow's Mirror smiles, but it's tinged with sorrow. "Well, I was so distracted with other stuff, and so very busy, that I didn't notice I'd forgotten to add water to all my ongoing stories. They all boiled dry. So I had to tip the ingredients and start over."

"What?! You mean... No! But... But..." The Dark Magician stares at her in shock.

"Oh! No! I don't mean I'm writing all my stories from the beginning again! I'm perfectly happy with how they've all turned out so far." She smiles as the mage sinks back into his chair with a loud sigh of relief. "I meant that I'd spent so long away from them that I'd forgotten the details about them. You know... where I was up to and where I'd planned on going from there. It's my own fault. I don't do much planning."

"Oh dear." The Dark Magician looks rather worried. "That does sound rather bad. You do not recall how you were going to finish... any of them?"

"Well... no, that's not quite it. I remember the endings to them all. The problem is that I'm not quite sure how I was going to get there for some of them. It's not unfixable. I just need to re-read them and get a feel for them again. That's all." She smiles.

"Ah." The mage smiles. "That does not sound as bad as it did before. But why has it taken you this long to do so?" He arches an eyebrow at the girl's blush. "Shadow's Mirror? You... have finished re-reading them all... have you not?" As she blushes more deeply and stares at the floor, he sighs. "Oh dear."

"Well... The problem is that I have to work through my ongoing stories one at a time. Read through one of them and then write a chapter. But what little writing time I have managed to squeeze in... my inspiration was never quite right for working on any of them." Shadow's Mirror sighs and shakes her head. "It's been the same with my drawings. I just haven't been able to get anything done." She looks quite frustrated.

"Oh my." The Dark Magician considers that. "Well, if you need inspiration... I would be more than happy to pose for you, or to tell you my life story." He beams at her.

It takes the girl a few minutes of coughing before she is able to speak. "Um... no. Thank you... but... no. That really won't be necessary." She grins at the pouting mage. "This happens to me sometimes. I go a while without any inspiration and then something happens and I get a lot all at once. This time around... I had computer problems."

"Again?" The Dark Magician winces. "You did not lose anything precious, did you?"

"No, but I was forced offline for over a month." As the mage pales and stares at her in shock, she nods. "Yeah, that was my reaction too for the whole first week. But after that, I got in and got a few things done that I'd been putting off." She grins. "Like catching up on a backlog of anime that included twelve volumes of InuYasha." She doesn't have to wait long for the mage to put two and two together.

"You have become inspired again! Oh that is wonderful!" He smiles and looks very excited as he practically bounces in his seat. "So what have you written? Only InuYasha?" He tries not to look too hopeful. "No... 'Hearts' or 'Shadows'?"

"I'm afraid not..." She bites her lip as he pouts at her. "But you know, you are a bit behind the news. What you were saying before about how long it's been since I updated... You were a little off."

The mage blinks. "I was?"

"Uh huh." Shadow's Mirror nods and then it's her turn to blink as he summons up a ledger and leafs through it. "Um... you mean you're actually keeping track?"

"Well of course! How else will I know when there is another chapter of 'Hearts' written? You do not agree to an interview every time you update." He frowns at the ledger. "Hmm... No, I was correct. None of your ongoing stories have been updated for all that time."

Shadow's Mirror smiles a mysterious little smile. "Well... it is true that it is not an ongoing story anymore but... I think you'll find that I've updated 'Library' since then."

"What do you mean it is not..." The Dark Magician blinks at her, then quickly studies his ledger. His eyes widen and he slowly lifts his head to stare at her. "You... finished 'The Shadow Library'?" He blinks at her and then beams happily. "That is wonderful!"

The girl smiles wryly as she nods. "Yes. Over a year ago, now. But don't worry. You weren't the only one who didn't notice. To say that it was not well received would be an understatement. It didn't get a single review. Actually..." She looks down at her feet. "I think that was one of the reasons why I didn't feel like writing for a while."

"Oh?" The mage looks curiously at her. "Why is that?"

"Well... I write for myself, but it's still nice to know that other people are enjoying what I'm writing. It makes the time and effort I put into my stories... worthwhile." She shrugs. "With 'Library'... It's an important story to me. It's one of my core stories, one of the ones that links together. It's also the first of those that I've finished. I guess... a part of me hoped that people would like it. But... no one even bothered to say that they'd read the last chapter or had hated it. I thought I might get a few complaints about it, but not hearing even one single word... I'm just egotistical enough to admit that it hurt." She smiles a little and shrugs again. "Childish of me, I know. I think that's one of the reasons why I haven't felt like working on any of my other ongoing ones. A part of me was wondering if maybe writing fanfiction was a waste of time."

The Dark Magician looks sympathetic as he nods. "So what has changed?"

The girl shakes her head. "Nothing really. I just needed some time to myself to focus on the other things in my life and to make sure that I was doing what I really wanted to do. I realised I was." She smiles. "I write because I love writing. I don't write for the praise or for reviews. I've never asked for them and I'm not going to start now. I knew when I started writing these stories that they would take me a while to finish. I promised myself that I would and... I'm going to keep that promise."

Nodding again, the mage reaches over and pats her knee. "That sounds like an excellent idea to me." He smiles at her and settles back in his chair. "So... you have begun writing again? Although, that is not quite correct. I see you have written a couple of things over the past year. Hmm... along with the last chapter of 'Library' there was a oneshot about Téa and... cake?" He arches an eyebrow at that.

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Actually... it's about Téa learning that when an expert says something is 'a piece of cake' he means it's easy for him to do but bothersome for anyone else."

"Ah. Yes, I have found that out myself." The Dark Magician winces. "Casting an invisibility spell if you are not naturally born invisible is not a good idea."

"I didn't hear about that one." Her grin widens at the look he gives her.

"Well you have been away for a while." He shrugs and quickly returns to the topic, obviously quite embarrassed about his invisibility incident. "I see your next story was another one featuring Téa." One eyebrow arches curiously. "That is unusual."

The girl nods. "Yeah. I normally try to spread the writing around the characters but Téa was the only one who fit those two stories. So she got the starring roles in them."

"I see." He nods and looks at his book again. "Ah! You have kept up with your special holiday updates! Two... InuYasha fics." He tries to keep the disappointment out of his voice.

"I wanted to do some Yu-Gi-Oh ones as well." Shadow's Mirror sighs. "But the months leading up to Christmas ended up being complete chaos and I barely managed to get those two done." She rolls her eyes. "Why is it that stuff never comes in single file but always in groups of three or four things at once?"

The Dark Magician pats her knee again. "I know the feeling all too well. Although in my case it usually comes in a horde... most often of Kuriboh." He winces. "So those were your last stories until now?"

The girl nods. "Yes. But then I managed to get some inspiration. At least with InuYasha. Hey, it's a start!"

"Indeed it is." The mage smiles happily at her. "So... are you going to tell me about your new stories or not?"

She arches an eyebrow at him and grins. "I thought you were only interested in my Yu-Gi-Oh fics?"

He has the good grace to look embarrassed. "I do not recall ever saying that..."

"Hmm..." She chuckles and lets him off the hook. "Well... the first one is called 'Reasons' and it's something a little different. I was in an odd mood the night I wrote it so it's written in a style I don't use all that often. I'm sure I'll remember why at some point," she adds with another chuckle. "I had a bit of fun with it, though."

The Dark Magician nods. "Most of your stories seem to have at least a little humour."

She nods too. "I'm most comfortable with writing that sort of thing. But anyway, I quite like 'Reasons'. I've been wanting to write an InuYasha fic with a transformation from human to half-demon in it ever since I saw it done in the show and now I'm very happy to say that I have." She grins. "I've also thought about this particularly storyline for some time, but somehow I never seemed to get around to writing it. Until now."

"I for one am very glad you did." The mage smiles at her. "I am sure I will be even more so when I have actually read it. So what else have you written?"

The girl becomes more serious. "The second one isn't so much what I've written as what I've decided should not have been written. A while back I wrote a fic called 'Visitors to a Feudal Fairytale'. As far as I was concerned, it was complete and I was very happy with it. But almost everyone who mentioned it to me asked when it was going to be 'finished' or what was going to happen 'next', because I'd left the ending open. I'd never intended on writing anything more, but one day I found myself tossing a few ideas around and I came up with something. It wasn't great. It wasn't even good. It had a few nice ideas but they didn't really fit that story. Still... I wrote it and called it chapter two and I've been trying to write the final chapter ever since."

"I remember that one. You mentioned having a lot of trouble with the final chapter."

"I finally realised that was because there isn't one." The girl shrugs. "I started working on one, but it was awful. I realised then that I just don't like that story as anything more than a oneshot. It was never meant to be more than that. I think I've spoiled it by trying to make that story into something it never was and never should have been."

The Dark Magician nods. "So what are you going to do about it?"

"I'm going to delete the second chapter. From now on, it's a oneshot. Just as it was always intended to be." Shadow's Mirror smiles.

Studying her for a moment, the mage smiles and nods. "You look quite a bit happier with that decision than the times you have mentioned that story to me in the past. It has been weighing on your mind so greatly?"

Shadow's Mirror nods. "I think so. That one and my ongoing stories. I have so little free time and so much that needs to be done... Those ongoing stories have become just one more thing that I can't seem to find the time to finish. That's why I've decided to try and make a concentrated effort on them."

"What an excellent idea! Where do you plan to start?" The Dark Magician leans forward eagerly.

"Well..." The girl bites her lip and looks very guilty. "My inspiration seems to be in the area of InuYasha at the moment." As the mage sighs and looks disappointed, she pats his knee. "I know the two you're waiting on and I promise I will work on them soon. But when the last chapter of 'Competition' came to me, I just had to write it."

The mage nods. "Of course you..." He blinks and stares at her. "Wait a minute... Did you just say that you have completed...?" He begins to look quite excited.

Shadow's Mirror smiles and nods. "Yes. I'm very pleased to be able to finally say that 'The Youkai Strength Competition' has been completed." She sighs in relief and leans back in her chair, for the first time looking comfortable with being there, chatting to the Dark Magician. "It's been a long time coming. I just hope the wait was worth it."

"Oh, I am sure it will be!" The purple-hatted mage smiles at her and summons tea and biscuits for both of them. He ignores the girl's arched eyebrow at the simple white cups and passes her the plate of chocolate chip cookies. "Hmm... if I recall correctly... that one and the one you mentioned before were the only ongoing ones you had for that fandom."

"That's right." Shadow's Mirror smiles. "I'm all caught up now."

The Dark Magician takes a moment to sip his tea as he considers that. "So what are your plans for the future in that fandom? Are you working on anything new?"

"Well..." Shadow's Mirror also sips her tea. "I don't think I'll be working on another ongoing one for a while. I have too many other ongoing ones right now. A oneshot is a possibility. There's an idea I've had for quite some time now. I've put it in a pot and give it a stir now and then and see if it becomes anything interesting."

Nodding, the mage waits until he's finished the bit of biscuit he's eating before he asks his next question. "What of your plans for your other stories?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles. "Well... I haven't started new chapters for most of my other ongoing stories, but I do have a couple of pages written for one of them. It's been stuck like that for a while, though, thanks to that boiling dry problem I mentioned earlier. I need to gather the ingredients for it again, but I'm hopeful that it will come to the boil fairly soon after that." She grins as the mage looks hopeful. "No, I'm not telling you what story that is. I don't want to disappoint you in case something else ends up coming to the boil first."

The mage pouts at her and then sighs. "Oh, very well then. So what else are you working on?"

"Not much really, aside from a oneshot and the first chapter of a new ongoing fic." She winces as the magician promptly spills his tea on his lap. "Oh dear."

It takes a moment for the startled mage to clean up the spillage, but then he stares at her in considerable shock. "You have... completed a oneshot?" He blinks at her.

"Actually, that one's been written for a while now. It had a few problems and needed a pretty heavy amount of editing, but I'm happy to say that it's now ready to go." She smiles at the stunned magician. "It's a Bakura and Ryou one called 'The Parakeet Adventure'. Yes, I know it's a very weird title." She grins and sips her tea.

"Yes, it certainly is." He still looks quite dazed. "What of this new ongoing story? Although... I thought you just said that you would not be starting anything new since you had so many other ongoing ones?"

Shadow's Mirror smiles wryly. "I meant InuYasha ones. I want to revel in the feeling of having no ongoing fics there for a while. Besides, this new one isn't exactly new."

At the confused look that comment earns her, she smiles. "It was one of the chapters I lost in that computer crash I had a few years ago. I wasn't able to rewrite it. I tried but it just didn't work out. But then one day, I was sitting at my computer working on something else and... the next thing I knew I'd been typing continuously for a few hours and I had the first chapter of 'A New Beginning' in front of me. I wasn't sure about posting it just yet. I wanted to get another chapter or two of it written first. But when I looked at how much I still have to do with the others, and thought about how short this one is likely to be... I changed my mind."

The Dark Magician nods and looks very wise. "As Dark Witch is always telling me, that is the prerogative of a female."

The girl laughs and nods. "I agree with her completely. What changed my mind about it was the realisation that while I had a long way to go on some of the others, writing a chapter of that shorter one and knowing that I was getting somewhere with it, just might be the motivation that I've been lacking with my writing lately." She shrugs. "I figure it's worth a try, anyway." She sips her tea and nibbles on a biscuit.

"Indeed." The Dark Magician nods. "So let me see if I have this straight... Of your ongoing ones, you have finished 'Library' and 'Competition' and 'Visitors' shall be restored to oneshot status. You also have a new ongoing story called... What shall its short form be?"

The girl considers for a moment. "Hmm... 'Beginning' makes the most sense, I think."

"'Beginning', it is!" The Dark Magician smiles at the hooded girl sitting in the chair opposite his couch. "As well as that, you have two new oneshots, 'Reasons' and...?"

Shadow's Mirror grins. "Best use 'Parakeet' for that one. I might need 'Adventure' for something else at some point."

"'Parakeet', then." The mage blinks and shakes his head. "I shall have to read that one. I confess, the title has made me most curious."

"Oh good." The girl grins. "That's what I was hoping it would do. Good titles are very important. The wrong title can make a story sound very different to what it really is."

The Dark Magician nods. "Very true. So, is that all of your latest works? You seem to have done quite a bit."

"Not as much as I would have liked." Shadow's Mirror sighs. "I really am very sorry to have made you and the others wait so long. I never meant to stop writing."

Leaning over, the mage pats her knee gently. "It is quite all right, my dear. We all understand. Even writers have lives beyond their stories."

"Well said." She grins.

The mage grins back. "Feel free to quote me." As the girl laughs, he nibbles another biscuit and sips his tea.

After she calms down, Shadow's Mirror smiles at him. "Thank you for coming to visit me, Dark Magician. I must admit, I've missed chatting with you like this."

"As I have missed conversing with you, Shadow's Mirror." The Dark Magician smiles back at the girl. "I wish I could speak with you more, however... time grows short. I can only stay in this world for a brief time, after all."

The hooded head nods. "I know. Don't worry, I'll come to you next time and we'll have a really good chat." She smiles at the Magician, who is already beginning to fade out of sight.

"I shall look forward to it, my dear. Hopefully next time... it will not be so long in coming. Farewell!" He vanishes completely.

Shadow's Mirror sips her tea and smiles to herself. "Yes, hopefully, it won't be."

Cut! Okay, that's a wrap!  
(more coming soon!)


	11. The Eleventh Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi. Shadow's Mirror is my own original character.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Before anyone asks, yes this is a Yu-Gi-Oh! story. It's a slightly different perspective on things, but it is definitely a story.

**Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 11: The Eleventh Show**  
By Shadow's Mirror

_**Show aired December 24, 2007**_

Late in the afternoon on the day before Christmas, the house is oddly silent and still. In the computer room, the only sounds are the soft humming of the computer tower and the light patter of rain coming from the screensaver that shows an English cottage with rain falling around it.

A shadow portal fades slowly into existence in the middle of the room and suddenly there is a new sound. Voices come from within the portal.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean... breaking and entering is a criminal offence, isn't it?"

"We are not breaking and entering. We are portalling and entering. It is hardly the same thing. Besides, Shadow's Mirror said that I was welcome here at any time. So we were invited. More or less. Well... I was, anyway." The Dark Magician steps out of the portal just as he finishes speaking. He quickly moves out of the way so his companion can join him.

"Gee... thanks. That's so reassuring." D. Human tries to step through the portal and manages to get his leg out before he gets stuck. "Oh bother. Can you give me a hand? The camera's caught."

"Ah." The mage waves a hand and the oval portal bulges in the middle, forming a circle. He winces as D. Human pops out of it and almost runs headfirst into the chair sitting in front of the large desk that takes up a good portion of the room. "Careful. Just because we are not breaking and entering, that does not mean that you can run around breaking things."

D. Human sighs heavily and shoots his companion an annoyed look. "Where should I set this up?"

"Ah... over there, I think." As D. Human heads for the right side of the room, the mage looks around thoughtfully. "Then again, perhaps over there would be better." He frowns as D. Human changes course and heads for the left side of the room, instead. "No, I believe I was right the first time. Over there was much... No, I said over there, not 'put it down where you are'. D. Human? Are you listening to me?"

Ignoring the Dark Magician with a skill born from years of ignoring lectures by the Shadow Realm's long-winded elders, D. Human calmly sets his camera and tripod up in the middle of the room. "On air in three... two..."

The mage blinks at his cameraman in surprise. "What? No! Not yet! I'm not ready..."

"One!" D. Human grins as he starts filming.

"...yet!" The Dark Magician winces slightly. "Ah. Good afternoon everyone! Welcome to another thrilling instalment of 'Interview with an Authoress'. In today's show we actually will not be interviewing any authoresses. Instead, we have a very special treat for our viewers." He beams into the camera. "Here we are in this..." He gestures around the room and his smile freezes as he tries to come up with a word that will capture it's essence.

"Mess? Jumble? Site of some spell gone badly wrong? Zone of chaos?" D. Human offers helpfully.

"... charming..." the Dark Magician frowns at D. Human as he snickers, "... room, which has the great honour of being the place where the Authoress Shadow's Mirror writes all of her wonderful stories. Yes, this... quaint..." he again ignores D. Human's snicker, "chamber is where Shadow's Mirror cooks up her plots and stirs in such flavours as emotion and action and, of course, her trademark sense of humour." He gestures to the room and D. Human carefully pans the camera around it, making sure to get every messy area in the shot.

"We are here today... D. Human, I do not believe our viewers wish to see that stack of papers."

"Horizontal filing system." D. Human grins as he turns the camera back on the Dark Magician, just in time to capture the look of confusion on his face.

"Excuse me?"

"It's not a 'stack of papers', it's a 'horizontal filing system'. Dark Witch has one just like it. Only hers is more impressive." D. Human shrugs as the mage blinks at him. "Well, this one's only four feet high. Dark Witch needs a step ladder to add filing to the top of hers."

The Dark Magician winces. "Well, that certainly explains why she never answers my correspondence. She probably 'files' it before she replies and then cannot find it again."

"Oh no. That's not why." D. Human smiles. "She keeps your correspondence separate."

"Does she really? Oh how marvellous." The mage looks very touched.

"Uh huh. She says the parchment you write on makes a wonderful source of fuel for the fireplace in her sitting room." D. Human makes sure to get a nice close up of the Dark Magician pouting, knowing that Dark Witch will be watching this and will be highly amused by the sight.

"Ah. Of course. She would say that." The Dark Magician shakes off his disappointment and frowns. "Now then... where was I?"

"You were about to tell me why we're here today."

"Oh yes. I mean, no. You already know. I told you earlier, remember? No, I was about to tell our viewers why we are here today." The mage smiles into the camera as D. Human shrugs.

"Same thing."

Ignoring his cameraman, the Dark Magician smiles and moves over to the desk. "We are here today to get a special inside sneak peek." He leans against the side of the desk.

"For several years now, Shadow's Mirror has posted a special fanfiction update every Christmas Eve. Last year's update consisted of two oneshots written within the InuYasha world. Although she has been rather quiet during this past year, her recent return after several months' absence has sparked a number of rumours in the Shadow Realm."

"Most of them started by you."

"Most of them..." The Dark Magician splutters and frowns at D. Human. "I did no such thing!"

He coughs and attempts to ignore the heat rising into his cheeks as his cameraman snickers. "As I was saying... Today, I will attempt to uncover Shadow's Mirror's plans for this year's update!" He looks very smug.

"Should I applaud?"

Ego thoroughly deflated, the mage sighs. "Only if you wish to."

"I don't. But you seemed as if you were expecting some sort of reaction." D. Human shrugs. "So... how are you going to uncover her plans then?"

"Well I... Um... That is... Actually, I thought I might..." The Dark Magician suddenly looks a lot less sure of himself than he had a few minutes earlier.

D. Human slowly straightens and stares at the mage over the top of the camera. "You have no idea, do you?"

"Well... I would not say that, exactly. I am merely unsure as to the precise details of our investigation. Namely... where we should begin." He eyes the room and looks rather lost.

"How about that folder on her desk? The one with 'Christmas Update' written on the front of it." D. Human makes sure to get another close up shot of the Dark Magician's startled look, then pans out a bit so he can get a good shot of the mage blinking down at the folder lying on the desk right beside where he's leaning.

"Ah. Well... Yes... I suppose that would make a certain amount of sense."

D. Human takes the camera off the tripod and puts it on his shoulder to make it mobile, then moves in closer to get a good shot as the Dark Magician carefully opens the folder. Inside there is just a single sheet of paper. Both men sigh in disappointment.

"Shadows. I was sure we'd found something good." D. Human pouts, then arches an eyebrow as his companion suddenly goes still, his whole attention focused on the paper. "What is it?"

The Dark Magician looks up and smiles, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "It is a list."

"Of?" D. Human can't quite keep his rising interest out of his voice, the mage's excitement proving to be too infectious for that.

"The things that Shadow's Mirror has to do before Christmas, including the stories and chapters that she has been working on, along with progress notes on each of them and their current status." He is so delighted he's almost dancing on the spot.

"So what are you waiting for? Read them out already!" D. Human grins and makes sure the camera's steady so they can record this moment for posterity... or for blackmail material for Dark Witch to use against the unsuspecting mage at a later date.

The Dark Magician cleared his throat and began reading. "'Finish Christmas wrapping, put up decorations'..."

D. Human sighs heavily. "Not the whole list! Just the bit about the stories!" He shakes his head and mutters loudly about people who complain about shooting images of horizontal filing systems and then read out lists of chores.

The Dark Magician again chooses to ignore the heat rising into his cheeks. "Ah. Yes. Um... Ah, there it is. 'Life 4: emotional chapter but now up to the good bit. One or two more chapters to go.' Oh my, that is wonderful news! I quite like that one."

D. Human nods. "That's Alexander and Valen's story, right?"

The mage nods. "Yes. If it is up to the 'good bit', then it is likely that the setting has now shifted to the Shadow Realm, rather than that little European country it started in."

"Are we in that one?" D. Human frowns as he thinks back. "I remember it happening, but I don't think I had anything to do with it. Not sure about you or Dark Witch, though."

"No, it was only the elders in that one. Oh, and the Magician of Black Chaos, if I recall correctly. Although I may possibly get a mention towards the end. Shadow's Mirror hinted at it a few weeks ago, when she came over to borrow a book."

The Dark Magician looks at the page again. "Anyway, moving on... 'Beginning 2: tricky chapter needing lots of research but now up to the conversation I lost a few years ago during my computer crash. Unknown chapters remaining.' Ah! So that is why she wanted to borrow that book! It was on the life and death rituals of the Ancient Egyptians. Quite a fascinating subject, really."

D. Humans pulls a face. "Sounds rather boring to me. Does she usually do research for her stories?"

"Not often, but if there is something that she needs to know to keep her story accurate, then she will look it up. As I understand it, this story centres on the judging of the souls that was believed in during Ancient Egyptian times. That was quite a specific ritual."

The Dark Magician looks at the paper again. "Now let me see..." He goes very still, his eyes widening in shock.

"What?" D. Human edges nearer. "Read it out, already!"

"Oh! Of course. Forgive me. I was just... Oh this is truly wondrous news." The mage beams into the camera. "It seems that Shadow's Mirror has finally completed the next chapter of 'Source'."

"All right! Well it's about time!" The camera jerks as D. Human does a happy little dance. "I'm mentioned a few times in that one, you know."

"Yes, yes, I know. Will you please try to keep that camera steady?" The mage frowns at D. Human, then refers to the paper in his hands again. "Let me see... 'Source 33: story plan sorted out and I am back on track with it. One, possibly two, chapters remaining.' Oh my." He blinks at that. "So soon? I was certain she had more to go than that! Oh this is... well..."

"Wonderful?" D. Human grins. "She's been working on that one for so long, she must be happy to be so close to the end."

The mage nods. "I am sure she is, however, I would imagine that there is also an element of sorrow to it. She has put a great deal of effort and energy into that story. For it to be ending..."

D. Human nods as well. "That's true. Well, she'll sort it out. It's not over yet, anyway. I can't wait to read it, though!" He grins and his companion smiles back.

"Neither can I. So, that brings us up to..." Again, he freezes, his eyes wide.

D. Human arches an eyebrow. "Now what?"

The Dark Magician wets his lips and softly reads out what is written on the page. "It says, 'Hearts 6: one mystery solved and another one revealed. Still some way from finishing, but the story should begin to move faster from this point."

A low whistle of appreciation comes from D. Human before he grins. "That's great news! That's the one you've been waiting for, right?"

Beaming happily, the mage nods. "Indeed! I have not been so beside myself with delight since the day I accidentally cast Multiply on myself while watching the elders walk past my tower and head for the forest instead."

D. Human blinks, then shakes his head. "I have a feeling I don't want to hear anymore of that story. So how about telling me... oh all right, the viewers, more about Shadow's Mirror's stories, instead?"

"Very well." The mage smiles at the page, obviously very happy to see that Hearts has been updated at long last. "The next one is... 'Interview 11: something a bit different.' Um..." He blinks at the page and then turns it over as if checking for more on the back, then turns it back over again.

His companion blinks at him. "Is that it?" At the mage's nod, D. Human shrugs. "Well, nothing more we can say about it then, is there? Moving on!"

The Dark Magician sighs and nods. "I suppose so. Next up is 'Shadows 4'! Oh my! She really has outdone herself this time around!" He beams at the page and then at D. Human. "You know, that means that she is updating all of her ongoing stories this Christmas. That is wonderful!"

D. Human nods and grins. "Maybe she felt guilty after her tiny update last year."

"Perhaps." The mage smiles. "Now then... 'Shadows 4: the tournament begins and I have a plan to work on for the rest of the story. Unknown number of chapters remaining.' She has a plan for that one, that is quite unusual, I believe. Shadow's Mirror does not normally plan a great deal."

"Maybe that story needed her to be a bit more careful, so that everything went in that needed to. It's one of the stories that links in with a few others, right?"

Nodding, the Dark Magician considers that. "Yes. It does. It is a separate story on its own, but there are some things that are mentioned in other stories. Such as Ryou learning about Evien Sanders' inclusion in the tournament. That was actually in one of the chapters of 'Source'."

"Really? Cool!" D. Human grins. "Do you think Shadow's Mirror will make a list of what's in what story once they're all done? It sounds a bit confusing."

After a moment's thought, the Dark Magician nods. "That sounds like quite a good idea. Perhaps you should suggest it to her the next time you see her."

"I'll do that. So if that's all of her ongoing ones..." The camera jerks a little as D. Human shifts his grip on it. "Is that everything in the update?"

The mage studies the list and frowns as he taps one item on it. "Apparently not. According to this, Shadow's Mirror has also written a oneshot. A special Christmas story about Bakura and Ryou titled 'Midnight Sneakiness'. Well, that does sound most intriguing. I shall have to read that one." He smiles happily.

D. Human grins. "That sounds good. I wouldn't mind reading it myself. Do you suppose it's around here somewhere?" He looks hopeful.

"Most likely, but I have no idea where. It is probably somewhere in this... machine..." He gestures at the computer and pouts at it.

"Dark Witch could probably find it." At the mage's astonished look, D. Human grins proudly. "She did a course a few months ago."

The Dark Magician blinks. "So that is why she came to the human world those times? I see." He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head. "No, actually I do not. Why would she need to know how to use one of these?"

"Because it was something that you had no knowledge of." D. Human smirks as the mage sighs.

"Ah. Of course. That explains it."

His companion chuckles. "Shall I call her?"

"No!" The mage clears his throat and tries not to look as panicked at that possibility as his outburst just revealed him to be. "Er... no... I think not. We really should not go looking. Besides, she will deliver the latest updates to the Royal Magical Library in the Shadow Realm, just as she always does." He smiles. "We may not be able to read them in this world on these machines," he gestures to the computer again, "but at least we can still read them."

D. Human nods. "True." He looks around. "So, is that everything, then?"

"I believe so." The Dark Magician smiles into the camera. "So there you have it, folks. The final tally for this year's Christmas Update by Shadow's Mirror is six new chapters, one for each of her ongoing stories, and a new oneshot written especially for Christmas."

He waits a moment while D. Human puts the camera back onto the tripod, then delivers his closing statement. "Thank you for joining me for yet another show and I hope that you will join me again, next time, for another 'Interview with an Authoress'."

"Looked good." D. Human grins as he begins to pack up his camera.

"What looked good?" The voice comes from the doorway.

"His closing for the show we just did on Shadow's Mirror's Christmas update." D. Human blinks at the Dark Magician. "Hey... are you all right? You've gone really pale?"

"Oh, don't worry. He's probably just really glad to see me."

D. Human blinks again and then slowly turns to look at the hooded and cloaked girl standing in the doorway. "Oops. Uh... Shadow's Mirror... Hi. Um... This isn't what it looks like!" As she arches an eyebrow, he smiles nervously and begins to edge towards the portal. "Um... maybe it is... but... he'll explain everything! Bye!"

As the flustered cameraman makes his escape through the portal, Shadow's Mirror turns her attention to the mage trying to sneak away through another hastily summoned portal. "I'd really like to hear this explanation of yours."

"Oh dear. I would love to, however... I left the teapot on the fire. Perhaps another time!" He jumps through the portal so quickly he hits his hat on the top of the portal.

Shadow's Mirror sighs and shakes her head as she crosses the room and puts a sheaf of papers on her desk. "Apparently they've both forgotten that I can follow them. Shadow Realm, here I come!"

One moment and a shimmering portal of shadows later and the room is again quiet and still, with only the sounds of the humming computer and the patter of the rain on the screensaver to break the silence.

On her desk, the title of the story she just got back from her beta looks deceptively innocent.

'Another Source of Magic - Chapter 34: The Book's Secret'

A note attached to it reads, 'Checked and beta'd, found nothing as usual. I can't believe you went and finished it on me. I'm going to go read Source from the start again now. Vash'

To be continued...


	12. The Final Show

DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 1: Before anyone asks, yes this is a Yu-Gi-Oh! story. It's a slightly different perspective on things, but it is definitely a story.

AUTHOR'S NOTE 2: Originally, this story was intended to run for the entire length of 'Tournament of Shadows', as they are quite strongly connected, but to do that I would have had to change the theme/format of the story at this point. Instead, I'm going to finish it with this chapter and possibly write a sequel at a later time. I hope that you've enjoyed reading what is certainly the strangest story I've ever written. Thank you for reading and reviewing!

**Interview with an Authoress  
Chapter 12: The Final Show**  
By Shadow's Mirror

_**Show aired December 31, 2008**_

The door to the Royal Magic Library is forced open just enough for a slight figure in a hooded cloak to slip inside, then forced closed again. This proves more of a challenge, as the wild storm winds buffeting the outside of the building try to gain entry to the library as well. Twice, the winds almost pull the door from the cloaked figure's hands, but finally it is closed against them. As they howl their outrage outside, the figure turns and leans against the door to catch its breath, gaining a first look at the inside of the library as it does so.

"So... even here, things have changed." The voice that comes from beneath the hood is soft and feminine with a note of sorrow in it. Moving slowly, as if unwilling to disturb the stillness of the library, the cloaked girl straightens and begins to cross to the large table that has pride of place in the centre of the massive room.

Normally, the library would be aglow with the soft light from the dozens of large green magelights that hover all around the room. In the parts of the room where the shelves of books rise in columns that only the library's winged caretaker has the power to view the top of, the magelights are set beneath platforms that hold a small stand with ink, quill and a stack of paper. The platforms are set at intervals in a spiral up the towering columns. The lights beneath them usually ensure that every book is illuminated, so a potential reader can see all of the titles on the spines.

On this day, however, all of the magelights are so dim that even the three hovering in a bunch above the table barely give off enough light to reveal the papers the cloaked figure sets there.

The normal sight of the librarians bustling around in their long robes is also missing, but with the storm so fierce in the Shadow Realm, the girl hadn't expected them to be there.

Although she hadn't expected the head librarian to be there either, the absence of his twinkling eyes and ruffling feathers as he oversees the running of the library and all of its daily business is a strong reminder of just how wrong things in the Shadow Realm have become.

With a soft sigh, the hooded figure reaches inside her cloak and withdraws a small video camera. She sets it on the table and adjusts it until she is happy with the position, then sits down in the chair it is aimed at. Turning it on, she eases back her hood enough to show the gentle smile on her lips.

"Hello and welcome to the show." Her smile turns a little sad. "Dark Magician, you've said that so many times, but I know you can't say it right now. So I thought I'd tape this show for you, instead. It won't be long now, and then you can all watch this together." Her smile brightens again.

"So... it's been a while since I was here last. A lot has been going on. But I've done something that I think will make you and the others rather happy." She pats the papers on the table in front of her.

"As you know, I record the things that happen in the world this Realm links to. Seeing things past and present... that's part of my power. But there's a difference between knowing events and being able to write them down. Sometimes, it takes a while for the right words to come." She smiles.

"Stories are like recipes. You add ingredients, mix them, flavour them, then cook them. You stir a little here, add a little more sugar or salt or spice there, put in water and leave to simmer every now and then. Before you know it, you have a story all ready to go. Usually, each chapter has to simmer for a time. But every now and then, you get one that's pre-cooked and just needs warming up." She laughs softly.

"One chapter a month for four months. The last was a week ago. That was the epilogue. 'A New Beginning' is now complete." The girl sits back in her chair and looks a little more at ease there.

"So now everyone will know how it happened. How Bakura returned to Ryou after the duel that should have ended with he and Yami leaving the world. But what they probably don't realise is that 'Beginning' was the beginning for more than Bakura's second chance at a life by Ryou's side. The prophecy Bastet mentioned was the start of something too. Also, all of the stories I've written... all of the events I've told of... They've happened after Bakura's return. With one exception, of course."

She smiles a little more. "That one is really the true beginning of it all. Bakura and the others have no idea how it connects to the present events, but they are starting to learn a little of it." Her smile fades. "Events have begun to move more quickly there." She sighs and shakes her head.

"Things are beginning to happen in the Domino City tournament. Last week, I wrote of the events of the second day and night of the contest. This week... day three. The beginning of it, at least. A lot is going to happen in that tournament, but then again... a lot is riding on the outcome of it, too. Far more than most of the contestants realise." Another sigh, but this time it's rather heavier.

"On another note, I'm now in a rather rare predicament. I've caught up to myself in 'Shadow's. I'm starting to write of things that give too much away. So I'll have to stop writing of that for a time. But I can write more of past events, and I will." The girl's smile this time looks slightly sad.

"I posted another chapter of 'Hearts' last week. A very important chapter. The most important one so far. I wish you could be here to read it, Dark Magician, but at the same time, I know you don't need to. The Shadow Realm was a big part of what happened there, and you already know how it all turned out. I only hope you like my telling of it." Again, her smile is slightly sad.

"So, last week brought the end of 'Beginning' and the continuation of 'Hearts' and 'Shadows'. This week... more 'Shadows' and two one-shots that should lighten the mood considerably." She grins. "They're short bits of fluff and nonsense aimed purely at entertaining rather than being any sort of serious literary endeavour, in other words."

Her tone becomes serious again. "Well, my dear friend... That's all my news and it's time for me to get going. I have a lot to do today. I hope that you and the others wake up soon and the Shadow Magic returns to how it should be. Until then... I'm going to miss our little chats so much. Maybe we can do it again, when you're feeling up to it. You know where to find me, when that happens."

As she talks, she stands and a whirling portal of shadows forms behind her. The girl turns the camera off but leaves it on the table, along with the papers containing her latest records of events past, present and future. Turning, she walks into the portal. "It's time to duel!"

The End


End file.
